Silenced
by Kohala
Summary: After referring to Voldemort by name in the presence of Death Eaters, Ron Weasley is unknowingly cursed for his actions. Harry and Hermione must figure out how to help their friend before his time runs out.
1. Curse Words

**~ Chapter 1 ~**

**Curse Words**

The morning sun slowly made its ascent over the hillside, causing a warm light to wash over the Burrow, which stood, towering, over the nearby trees. To the untrained Muggle eye, the Burrow looked as though it could topple over on itself with the smallest breeze, but in reality, the charms and magic placed upon the tiny house and its many add-ons, kept the Burrow sturdy.

The inhabitants within the Burrow slowly began to stir and soon began preparing for the long day ahead of them.

Harry Potter made his way down the many flights of stairs from the attic toward the small kitchen area where Mrs. Weasley was serving breakfast. Hermione Granger had arrived at the Burrow early that morning and was already sitting at the kitchen table across from Ginny eating breakfast. Harry sat next to Hermione and scooped a spoonful of scrambled eggs onto his plate.

"Where's Ron?" He asked once he'd swallowed his first mouthful.

"He's in the garden, collecting some vegetables for dinner," replied Mrs. Weasley. "I must say, I'm going to miss having help around the house while you're all gone."

They were interrupted by the sound of the front door as it swung open and hit the wall. Ron emerged with an arm full of vegetables, mumbling profanities under his breath.

"Bloody garden gnomes," he grumbled as he placed the vegetables on the counter next to the kitchen sink. "Nearly bit my finger off." He curled his finger and put his knuckle in his mouth, sucking on the wound inflicted by an angry garden gnome.

"Oh, I'm sorry dear," said Mrs. Weasley. "They do get a bit violent during their mating season." She immediately enchanted the vegetables with her wand and watched as they began washing and peeling themselves.

Ron sat next to Ginny and piled his plate full of eggs, bacon, and biscuits. He shoveled the food into his mouth, ignoring the looks of disgust from Hermione and Ginny.

"You really must learn to eat like a human being, Ron," Hermione grumbled. Ron rolled his eyes and proceeded to shovel more food into his face.

---

Following breakfast, Ron, Harry, and Hermione helped Mrs. Weasley clear the table and wash the dishes before heading outside for some fresh air. They walked past Mr. Weasley's shed, which he kept full of his Muggle treasures, and around the perimeter of the cornfield, stopping to sit just out of sight of the Burrow.

"I wonder who the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher will be this year," said Hermione as she pulled her knees to her chest and pulled a blade of grass from it root. "Whoever it is, they can't possibly be as bad as some of the teachers we've had already."

"I really don't care who it is," replied Harry. "I'm just glad Umbridge is gone." He sat across from Hermione and leaned back on his hands. The four of them sat in a circle on the dirt next to the cornfield and relaxed after their large breakfast.

"That makes two of us," replied Ron. He took a bite out of an apple that he had grabbed from the kitchen before they'd gone outside.

As the quartet rested in the yard, Bellatrix Lestrange and Fenrir Grayback crept a few feet away from them, hidden within the tall stalks of corn. Bellatrix stepped quietly towards the group, trying not to make any noise that would alert them to her presence. She stopped once she was close enough to see them and motioned for Fenrir to remain still.

Voldemort's Death Eaters had been sent out to monitor a number of wizarding families since the attack at the Ministry. The Weasley's were one of the main targets, as blood traitors were considered to be just as bad as Muggle-born witches and wizards. The fact that the Weasleys were Harry Potter's closest allies did not help either.

"It's going to be interesting to see how Hogwarts will change now that You-Know-Who is back," said Ginny. "Dean told me that Seamus might not be allowed to come back this year. I reckon the student population will be quite a bit smaller than last year."

"You-Know-Who?" Ron questioned with a grimace. "What happened to calling him Lord… Voldemort from now on?" Hermione smiled. Bellatrix stepped back in disbelief as she heard the blood traitor use the Dark Lord's name.

"Look at you," Hermione laughed. "You can almost say his name without making yourself sick." Ron grimaced and shot her a dirty look.

"What's this about?" Harry asked, looking from Ron to Hermione.

"We decided that being able to call him by his name would make us stronger opponents," Hermione replied. "I mean, if you're too afraid to call your enemy by his name, how are you supposed to take him on in a battle?"

"Good point," replied Harry. He frowned as he heard a soft rustling within the cornfield beside them. He stopped suddenly and stared through the stalks of corn, trying to see what had made the noise. "Did you hear that?" he asked.

"Probably just a garden gnome," replied Ron, with little interest. He'd already fought with the garden gnomes that morning. He had no intention of doing it again.

"We should probably get our things ready," Hermione suggested. "I reckon we'll be leaving soon. We have to catch the train at 11am." She, Ginny, and Ron began walking back to the Burrow. Harry continued to stare into the cornfield. He knew he'd heard something rustling around in there. With one last look, he turned and ran to catch up to Ginny, Ron and Hermione.

Bellatrix moved swiftly through the cornfield, keeping her gaze on Ron. "You dare speak the Dark Lord's name?" she hissed with disgust. She emerged from the cornfield, followed by Fenrir, and ran toward the Burrow. She peered through the kitchen window, ensuring that no one could see her, and watched as Harry and Ron ascended the narrow staircase.

"Quickly now," Mrs. Weasley shouted after the trio as they headed up the stairs. "We'll be leaving straight away. Don't give me time to change my mind!" Mrs. Weasley was not happy about sending Ron and Ginny back to Hogwarts with Voldemort on the loose. However, Mr. Weasley had convinced her that no harm would come to their children while Dumbledore was still in charge of the school.

Hermione and Ginny were the first to descend from their bedroom with their trunks. They set them down outside the door and waited in the kitchen for the boys. Bellatrix crept around the house and hid around the corner as Ron and Harry tossed their trunks outside along with the girls'.

Once the door was closed, Bellatrix moved swiftly over to Ron's trunk and pulled it open. All of Ron's things had been thrown into his trunk, nothing had been folded. In amongst his clothes and books were a few chocolate frogs and some Drooble's. Bellatrix lifted one of the chocolate frogs from the trunk and quickly whispered something under her breath and tapped it with her wand. The box was immersed momentarily in a green light before returning to normal.

"That'll teach you to disrespect the Dark Lord," she cackled as she dropped the candy back into the trunk and apparated out of sight. Fenrir looked down at the old trunk thoughtfully before apparating after Bellatrix.

---

"This is wicked," Ron exclaimed as he looked over his timetable. "I have three spare periods in a row." He looked longingly at his time table for a moment before mumbling softly. "I did have four until you made me take Potions."

He and Harry were sitting in the sixth year's bedroom within Gryffindor tower. Everything in the room, from the carpets to the curtains, was a crimson red with gold trim to represent the house of Gryffindor. The rest of the sixth year boys had already claimed their beds and had begun to unpack their things.

"It might be nice to learn Potions from someone besides Snape for once," said Harry as he looked over his timetable. "I can't say I'm looking forward to Defense Against the Dark Arts though. Snape's going to ruin my favorite class."

"Maybe I'll drop out of Defense Against the Dark Arts this year," Ron suggested. "You could start up the DA again and I'll take that instead."

"Could do, I suppose," said Harry, humorously. "I'd love to see Snape's face when only the Slytherins showed up for his class." He and Ron looked at each other for a moment, then, shook their heads simultaneously. "Maybe that's not such a good idea."

Ron set his timetable on his bed and opened his trunk to start unpacking his things. As he threw his clothes into his dresser drawers, he stumbled upon the sweets he'd packed for himself.

"I completely forgot about these," said Ron. "I packed them for the ride here." He tossed a box of Drooble's to Harry and tore into the Chocolate Frog. He waited for the animation charm to wear off before eating the chocolate.

"I suppose we ought to be getting to bed," Harry suggested as he looked around the room to find the other Gryffindor boys had either already headed to bed or gone to the bathroom to clean up. "Hermione will be horrified if we're late for our first classes." Ron nodded and slipped beneath his blankets.

---

Harry rolled over and squinted as the light from one of the windows hit his face. He reached blindly for his glasses and tucked the arms behind his ears. He sat up in bed and looked around the room. Most of the boys were already out of bed.

Ron was in the bed next to his, snoring loudly. His right arm was resting over his head so that the crook of his elbow covered one eye. The other hand hung limply over the edge of his bed and his fingers twitching occasionally. Harry grabbed his pillow and tossed it at Ron, who groaned and rubbed his eyes as he sat up.

"It's about time you two got up," said Neville as he entered the room. "They're going to be serving breakfast in ten minutes."

Harry stepped out of bed and grabbed his robes. Ron pushed his legs off the side of the bed, cringing as his bare feet connected with the cold stone floor, and slowly made his way over to his dresser to retrieve his own robes.

They met up with Hermione in the Great Hall at the Gryffindor table. Hermione was already sitting next to Ginny near the centre of the table. Harry and Ron sat across from the two girls and piled food onto their plates.

"The Dark Mark was seen in a town near Hogsmeade," Hermione stated as she read through the Daily Prophet. "There are rumors that Lord Voldemort himself was there at the time of the attack."

"He's getting more powerful by the day, it seems," Harry stated. "It's only a matter of time until he's at full strength again."

Ron felt a sudden pain in the pit of his stomach. He swallowed his mouthful of food and set his fork down, then, sat still for a moment, waiting for the pain to subside.

"Oh, does that mean the DA will continue this year?" Luna asked excitedly as she turned in her seat to face them. She'd been listening in on their conversation from her own House table. "I do hope so. I've missed it over the summer. I've done some practicing at home, but I don't find it's quite the same."

Ron sat quietly in his seat, staring blankly at his plate. He had been holding his breath since the pain started; afraid that breathing might intensify the pain. He slowly blew the air out of his lungs and grimaced.

"Excuse me," he gasped as he climbed off of the bench and ran for the nearest boys' bathroom.

"Is he ok?" Luna asked.

"You'd better go and check on him, Harry," Hermione instructed. "He really shouldn't be late for the first class of the term. He'll miss something important."

Harry looked down at his full plate of food then up at Hermione. "But I…" he started. He examined Hermione's expression for a moment before heaving a sigh and leaving the Great Hall.

"Ron? Are you all right?" Harry asked as he walked into the boys' bathroom. He found Ron gripping one of the sinks and breathing heavily; his knuckles turning white from the strain of his grip.

"Must have eaten too fast or something," Ron groaned. He cupped his hand under the faucet and sucked the water into his mouth before spitting into the sink to get rid of the taste of vomit.

"That's never bothered you before," Harry humored. Ron gave a Harry a sarcastic smile before cutting off the flow of water from the faucet. "Would you like to have another go at it?"

"Nah," replied Ron. "I suppose I'd better wait until lunch." He released his grip on the bathroom sink and followed Harry out to the hallway, meeting a fast moving crowd of students on their way to their various classes.

They forced their way through the crowd and headed towards the dungeons for their first Potions class with Professor Slughorn.


	2. Embarrassing Encounters

**~ Chapter 2 ~**

**Embarrassing Encounters**

"Did you see the way Romilda Vane was looking at you during lunch?" Hermione asked. She, Harry, and Ron made their way through the crowded corridors toward their next class.

"I didn't notice, actually," replied Harry. He flipped through the tattered pages of the old, used textbook he'd gotten from the cupboard in their Potions class.

Hermione frowned and tried to grab the book from Harry's hands. He quickly pulled it aside and tucked it into his pocket.

"You really should give that book back to Professor Slughorn," Hermione snapped. "I don't trust this 'Half-Blood Prince'. You have no idea what kind of Dark magic he or she could have written in there."

"Give it a rest, Hermione," Ron mumbled. "It probably belonged to someone like you who's just naturally good in Potions." Hermione couldn't help but blush as she tried to remain angry with Harry.

"And what if it belonged to someone like Voldemort?" she snapped. "He's a half-blood wizard, too, remember." Harry frowned and quickened his pace towards Defense Against the Dark Arts. He wasn't keen on being early to Snape's class, but he also didn't want to discuss the book any further with Hermione. He'd considered that it could have been Voldemort's book, but refused to believe it.

"Voldemort's not likely to be boasting about his blood status, Hermione," he argued.

The trio walked into the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom and chose a table to sit at that was close enough to the front of the class for Hermione, yet still far enough away that Harry and Ron felt comfortable. Normally Hermione would insist on having them all sit at the front of the class where learning was optimal, but because it was Snape's class she was willing to let it go.

The once bright and inviting classroom now seemed dank and depressing, just as the Potions class had been when Snape taught the subject. All of the window shades were now pulled over the windows to prevent any natural light from entering the room. A few torches and candles were lit around the room to provide the students with enough light to work within the classroom.

Snape strode purposefully into the room, his greasy, black hair sticking to the sides of his face, slamming the door behind him. The sound echoed off the stone walls making Ron cringe in his seat.

Snape instructed the class in a dull monotone, causing Dean Thomas to fall asleep, which caused quite a scene as his head dropped onto the table with a loud crack. Snape glared at Dean as he sat straight in his chair and rubbed his forehead. His inability to pay attention ended up costing the Gryffindor House five points.

Normally, the Defense Against the Dark Arts class involved more hands-on activities, but Snape immediately had the class copying out a tedious amount of information. As Harry began copying the notes Snape had assigned them, he was reminded of Professor Umbridge's class. He had assumed that because Snape had been trying to get his greasy hands on the Defense Against the Dark Arts job for as long as he had, he'd be a bit better at teaching the subject.

Snape circulated through the classroom, ensuring each of his students remained on task as they copied the notes written on the board. Hermione worked diligently to get her work done as Harry, with his head propped with one hand, slowly copied out the notes. Ron sat slightly hunched over with his quill to his paper, but his hand wasn't moving, although he was trying with a great deal of determination to move his hand to copy his notes.

He could sense Snape coming up behind him and he didn't want to be found with nothing written down. Beads of sweat began to form along his hairline and his hand quivered slightly as he began to panic. He really didn't want to have a confrontation with Professor Snape, especially not on the first day of class.

Snape placed his hand on the table behind the trio. He looked down at Seamus' notes and grimaced. As he took a step toward the trio's table, Ron's hand began scribbling the notes furiously onto his parchment. The final product was barely legible, but he was able to catch up enough that Snape merely gave him a dirty look before moving on.

"Do you have a death wish?" Hermione whispered harshly. Ron grimaced and quickly finished his notes.

---

The first month of classes seemed to pass quickly as the students struggled to keep up with the massive number of assignments given by the professors. The tension within the school was palpable amongst the fifth and seventh year students as their futures now depended on the marks they would receive in their O.W.L.s and their N.E.W.T.s.

Mealtimes were the only times in which students could relax and forget about their assignments. Each meal was an hour of relaxation and socialization that did not take away from their busy study schedules.

Harry leaned over his plate and grabbed a biscuit from one of the overflowing serving trays. The house elves had prepared yet another elaborate feast for the students of Hogwarts. There were trays upon trays of spaghetti, meatballs, garlic biscuits, roasted chicken, cooked vegetables, and a number of salads. Harry's plate was completely filled with food. Once he'd procured his biscuit, he began digging into his heap of spaghetti.

"I'm really considering starting the DA again this year," Harry stated between mouthfuls of food. "The way Snape is teaching the class this year, no one will be able to take on Voldemort."

"I don't know what Dumbledore was thinking," Ron grumbled. "Assigning Snape to Defense Against the Dark Arts. It was a terrible decision if you ask me."

"I agree," Ginny complained. "There's only so much you can learn from copying out notes. How are you supposed to learn spells and counter curses if you can't even try them?"

Ron's body froze suddenly in his chair before he could start filling his plate with food. He stared longingly at the food set in front of him then at his empty plate. He willed his arm to start filling his plate so that he could eat, but his body refused to cooperate.

Hermione walked into the Great Hall and sat across from Ron and Harry. She placed her textbooks on the bench next to her and scooped a portion of spaghetti onto her plate.

"We had the most interesting lesson in Ancient Runes today," Hermione began. "It really is a shame you two didn't register this year."

Harry raised an eyebrow at her and smiled. Hermione rolled her eyes, unable to understand how both of her best friends could have no interest in the subjects Hogwarts had to offer. She sighed and looked over at Ron.

"You can't possibly have finished eating already!" Hermione exclaimed. Ron continued to stare at his plate. He'd regained control of his fingers and was working his way up to his arms.

"Ron?" Hermione inquired. She watched him for a moment, waiting for an answer. "Ron!"

Ron finally regained control of his body. He sat up and looked at Hermione.

"Honestly, Ron," Hermione sighed impatiently. "It's no wonder you grades are slipping this term. You really need to start paying more attention to the world around you."

Ron pursed his lips and frowned indignantly. He didn't know what to tell her or Harry about what was happening to him and was too embarrassed to explain. He grabbed a biscuit from one of the trays and angrily took a bite.

---

Harry, Hermione, and Ron sat on a sofa within the Room of Requirement as the members of the DA trickled into the room. Once the last registered member entered the room, the door within the corridor sunk back into the wall and disappeared, allowing the DA members the privacy they would need to practice their spells.

"Looks like we can get started," Hermione suggested. "I think that's everyone." Harry nodded and pushed himself to his feet. Hermione followed, leaving Ron sitting on the sofa alone, flipping through Harry's Potions textbook to prepare for their next class.

"Welcome back, everyone," Harry greeted. "It's nice to see some new faces as well as everyone back from last year." He looked over the crowd and smiled nervously. "Shall we begin?"

Harry began the meeting by explaining his intent for the DA and discussing the fight against Voldemort and the Death Eaters from the previous year. Neville's face turned crimson as his name was mentioned and he stared at the floor nervously. Luna on the other hand looked completely at ease next to him and took no notice of the awed stares from some of the other students.

As Harry introduced the first counter curse of the evening, Ron suddenly frowned and gripped Harry's textbook tightly. He gasped for breath as his lungs tightened painfully. His entire body began to tense and he found, once again, that he could not move.

The group around him was so immersed in Harry's lesson that they took no notice of Ron. Even Harry and Hermione hadn't noticed that Ron had yet to join them. He fought against his body, attempting to move any part of his body. He closed his eyes and tried focusing on one body part at a time, but every muscle in his body refuse to cooperate with him.

As the DA separated into two groups to practice their counter curses against one another, Ron's body began to relax and he was able to set Harry's book aside. He stared at the book questioningly, wondering if there was something about it that was causing his body to freeze. As far as he could remember, the bouts of paralysis had started when Harry had gotten the book.

He stood up from his chair, trembling slightly, and stood behind Harry to watch what he had taught the members of the DA. He avoided Hermione's gaze, not wanting her to figure out that anything was wrong. He especially didn't want to give her another reason to dislike the Half-Blood Prince's book. Harry loved that book.

---

The following afternoon, Harry, Hermione, and Ron rushed through the corridor towards Snape's classroom. Their Charms class had run a little over schedule, which put them in danger of being late for Defense Against the Dark Arts if they didn't hurry.

Just as Hermione reached for the door of the classroom, Colin called to them from a short distance back.

"Harry, Hermione," Colin panted. He'd had to run through the corridors in order to catch them before they went into Snape's classroom. "Professor Slughorn asked me to get you. He needs to ask a favor of you in his office."

"Can it wait, Nigel?" Harry asked hurriedly. "We have to get to class." Nigel shook his head and explained that Slughorn had already spoken with Snape about their absence in his class.

Harry and Hermione turned to Ron and apologized sheepishly as they headed for Slughorn's classroom, leaving him to go to Snape's class by himself.

Ron walked angrily into Snape's classroom and sat in his usual seat, next to the two empty seats usually occupied by Harry and Hermione. He dropped his textbook and parchment onto the table and glared at the blackboard at the front of the room.

"Open your books to page two hundred thirty six," Snape muttered as he slammed the classroom door. Ron grabbed his textbook and slowly flipped to the assigned page, avoiding Snape's judgmental gaze. He could feel Snape's eyes boring into him and could tell he was working out a malicious comment as to why Ron had been left behind.

Ron looked up suddenly, shocked that Snape had turned away without saying anything. Snape tapped the chalkboard and instructed the students to copy the notes from the board. There was an audible sigh from the entire class as they took out their quills and parchment.

"Professor Snape?" Seamus asked as he raised his hand. He waited for Professor Snape to acknowledge him, with much disdain, before proceeding with his question. "Is there any possibility of actually getting to try some of these spells and counter curses during the term? I'm not saying we're not learning anything this way, but wouldn't it be more beneficial to us if we had the chance to experience these spells first-hand?"

"Yeah," Dean added. "This is all well and good, but if we run into You-Know-Who, we're going to remember what we've actually practiced, not what we've written out."

Ron listened as Snape belittled Dean and Seamus in front of the class for even suggesting that they could take on Lord Voldemort. He copied out the notes that Snape had written on the board, trying his best to avoid any extra attention from Snape.

Once Seamus and Dean were completely humiliated, Snape turned away and began to circulate the classroom to ensure everyone got their work done. He stood behind Ron and stared down at his parchment. Ron's hand began to shake as he felt Snape standing behind him.

"I'm shocked, Mr. Weasley," Snape muttered. "I was beginning to wonder if you could even spell your own name." Ron grimaced and continued writing his notes. As Snape continued to make his way around the classroom, Ron's fingers tensed and froze. He rolled his eyes and waited for the episode to end. He had enough written down that he wasn't worried about Snape coming to check on him. He stared down at his quill with frustration as a large drop of black ink splattered onto his parchment over the last word he'd written.

"Put your books away," Snape demanded at the end of the class. "Anything left in my classroom will become mine." As everyone packed their things away and began leaving the room, Ron's body once again began to function properly. He quickly finished copying Snape's notes, ignoring the increasing pain in the pit of his stomach.

"I never would have expected you to stay late to finish your work, Mr. Weasley," taunted Snape. "But you have been acting very strange over the last few weeks… even for you." Ron swallowed, fighting back the nausea that was beginning to burn through his stomach and up into his throat.

Snape walked around to the front of Ron's table, placed both hands along the edge and bent to look down his nose at Ron.

"As your teacher, I'm obligated to inquire as to whether or not there are any problems that can be solved through any means that Hogwarts has to offer," Snape explained, uninterested. "Is there a source to your odd behaviour, Mr. Weasley?"

Ron swallowed again and cringed. "I think I'm going to be sick," Ron gasped. Snape frowned and pointed to an old cauldron near his desk. Ron leapt from his chair and just made it to the cauldron in time. He gagged into the cauldron, puking up the small amount of food he'd been able to eat during lunch in the Great Hall.

Snape cringed and watched Ron with a disgusted expression. Once he'd expelled everything from his stomach, Ron sat back and pushed the cauldron away.

"Normally I would expect to blame your brothers' Puking Pastilles, but they tend to create more… content," said Snape as he looked down at Ron and the cauldron with disgust. "I would suggest that you either head to your common room or go see Madame Pomfrey." Ron nodded and pulled himself off of the floor. He grabbed his things and, without making eye contact with Snape, moved quickly out of the classroom.


	3. Sleep Deprivation

**~ Chapter 3 ~**

**Sleep Deprivation**

Ron lay awake in his bed, unable to fall asleep. He'd been lying in bed for nearly three hours, feeling completely knackered, but unable to drift off. It was becoming an aggravating habit that he couldn't seem to overcome. He'd been unable to sleep for the past few days. No matter how long he lay in bed with his eyes closed, sleep would not come.

He rolled over, pulling his comforter closer to his chin, and breathed an aggravated sigh. He could hear the collective breathing of his roommates as they slept soundly in their own beds. Someone had a slight nose whistle that could be heard every so often among the rest of the heavy breathing.

Unable to lie in bed any longer, Ron tried to occupy himself by tidying up around his bed, hoping to bore himself to sleep. All of the items around his bed were soon picked up and put in their place. He crawled back into his bed, tucked himself in, closed his eyes, and willed himself to sleep.

He cleared his mind and focused on the rhythmic breathing of one of his roommates. He was completely relaxed and overly tired, but his mind refused to move from its conscious state to the blissful release of slumber.

He slammed his fists against his mattress irritably and grit his teeth. He pushed his legs over the side of the bed and stepped onto the cool, stone floor once again. He made his bed and walked angrily around the boys' dormitory, looking for something to keep him occupied.

The Marauder's Map was sitting atop Harry's night table. He'd been using it to watch Malfoy's movements around the castle since the beginning of the term. He had a hunch that Malfoy was up to something, but hadn't been able to catch him in action.

Ron picked up the Marauder's Map and pulled the folds of the parchment open. He traced his finger from the Gryffindor common room to the Room of Requirement, ensuring that no one would be around to catch him in the corridors after curfew. He folded the parchment and placed it back on Harry's night table, then headed downstairs. He crept quietly out of the common room through the portrait hole and quietly made his way to the Room of Requirement, hoping that it could provide something that would help him sleep or at least occupy his time.

---

Ron pulled the door of the Room of Requirement open and stepped inside, quickly closing the door behind him. He had made it all the way from the Gryffindor common room without being seen.

The Room of Requirement was exactly what he had asked for. It was much smaller than it was when Harry held the DA meetings in it. The walls were all painted with calming, neutral colours, which surrounded a large, king-size bed. The floor was covered with a plush, cream coloured carpet that brushed softly against Ron's feet as he made his way toward the bed.

White noise came from somewhere within the room and Ron could feel himself beginning to feel slightly more relaxed and ready to fall asleep. He crawled into the bed and covered himself with the soft sheets and comforter. The scent of lavender wafted from the blankets, enticing Ron to fall asleep within their embrace.

He sat up and lifted a cup of chamomile tea from the night table. Everything about the room had its purpose in putting its inhabitants to sleep. Even the temperature within the room was perfect. However, even with the white noise, the scent of lavender, and the chamomile tea, Ron had difficulty falling asleep. He tossed and turned for hours before finally falling asleep at 9:30am, the same time that his fellow students were setting to work in their first classes of the day.

---

Harry awoke suddenly to a large crash within the boys' bedroom. He sat up in his bed and quickly put his glasses on to find Neville on his hands and knees collecting a few items that he had dropped on the floor.

"Good morning, Neville," Harry grunted as he pushed himself out of bed. He stretched and turned to wake Ron, only to find that Ron was not in his bed.

"He's been gone for quite some time," Neville explained as he stood up with an armful of seeds and bulbs. "He was gone even before I got up this morning to help Professor Sprout in the greenhouses."

Harry frowned, not sure if he was angry with Ron for leaving without him, or concerned about his whereabouts. Ron wasn't really known for getting up early, let alone making his bed and tidying around it. Harry changed out of his pajamas and headed to the Great Hall for breakfast.

The Great Hall was buzzing with conversations amongst the hundreds of young witches and wizards. The stone walls seemed to amplify the voices, making it sound as though the voices were coming from the walls themselves. Both he and Hermione sat silently at the Gryffindor table, awaiting Ron's arrival.

"Where do you suppose he's gone?" Harry asked, finally breaking the silence. Hermione sat quietly for a moment, absently pushing a slice of pineapple around on her plate.

"I'm not sure," she replied softly. "He looked kind of odd during the DA meeting last night though. Do you suppose something upset him?"

Harry tried to think back to their DA meeting. Ron had been quite quiet and looked somewhat different than usual; more withdrawn and tired. He couldn't remember saying anything that would upset Ron enough that he'd miss breakfast. He shrugged and looked back at the entrance to the Great Hall, expecting Ron to come around the corner at any minute.

"I heard he threw up in Snape's class yesterday," Ginny interjected. "I reckon he's trying to avoid the public humiliation." Hermione raised her eyebrows sympathetically and continued to watch for Ron.

Ron never showed up for breakfast. Unable to stay in the Great Hall any longer, Harry and Hermione left for their first class of the day; Hermione to Ancient Runes, Harry to Quiddich practice.

---

Harry entered the Transfiguration classroom and sat next to Hermione. He frowned as he placed his textbook on the table and looked over at Ron's empty seat.

"Have you seen Ron?" Harry asked. He turned in his seat to look back at the classroom door, hoping to see Ron enter the classroom. "He didn't show up for Quiddich practice." Hermione shook her head, concern etched across her face.

Professor McGonagall stepped into the classroom and closed the door behind her. She walked to the front of the classroom, glancing over at Ron's empty seat, and proceeded to introduce the day's Transfiguration lesson.

Harry tried to pay close attention to Professor McGonagall's lesson, but his concern for Ron's whereabouts was keeping him from focusing. Even Hermione was not as on task as she usually was when a teacher was giving instructions.

"In the past, you have learned to transform small and medium sized creatures into inanimate objects," Professor McGonagall explained. "As you are now all at N.E.W.T. level, you should be ready to perform much more complicated transformations."

As Professor McGonagall assigned the class their project for the day, the classroom door slowly opened and Ron crept inside. Without a word, he sat next to Hermione and opened his textbook.

Ron had slept within the Room of Requirement for two hours before waking. After looking at his watch, he had quickly realized that he'd missed his first class and rushed back to the Gryffindor dormitory to get his robes on and raced to Transfiguration.

He looked completely knackered. The purple rings beneath his eyes stood out against his pale skin and sallow cheeks. He rubbed his eye with the heel of his palm and squinted up at the black board, trying to decipher Professor McGonagall's notes as they swam across the board.

"Where have you been?" Hermione hissed. "We've been absolutely beside ourselves! There are only ten minutes until the end of class." She looked over at Ron and examined his appearance. "Ron, you look terrible."

"Thanks," Ron mumbled sarcastically. He looked up at the chalkboard and began copying the notes onto his parchment.

Harry shifted forward so that he could see Ron past Hermione. Ron's face was pale and almost grey in colour. He looked as though he hadn't eaten or slept in weeks.

"Are you all right?" Harry whispered, trying not to get Professor McGonagall's attention.

"I'm fine," Ron muttered irritably. He continued writing the notes from the board without looking at either Harry or Hermione.

"Are you sure?" Hermione asked. "You look as though…"

"I said I'm fine!" Ron snapped, finally looking Hermione in the eye. She gasped as she looked into his bloodshot eyes. The red contrasted with his irises, making the blue stand out. "Just leave me alone!"

Hermione flinched, having not expected Ron to blow up at them. She turned and continued with her assignment, giving Ron his space. Harry frowned and continued to stare at Ron for a few moments before returning to his work.

"I'm afraid our time for today has come to an end," Professor McGonagall announced. Everyone in the classroom began packing up their things and leaving the classroom. As Ron closed his textbook and stood up, Professor McGonagall immediately asked him to stay after class. He sighed and sat back down, keeping his head down and avoiding eye contact with anyone.

"We'll meet you in the Common Room, Ron," said Hermione softly. She gently placed her hand on Ron's shoulder before pulling Harry out of the classroom by his sleeve.

Once the door closed behind the two of them, Professor McGonagall pulled up a chair in front of Ron. She placed her hands on top of the table, one on top of the other, and looked down at Ron.

"Mr. Weasley, is everything all right?" Professor McGonagall asked. She took in his appearance and shook her head.

"I'm fine, Professor," Ron replied, not looking up from the table. Professor McGonagall continued to examine Ron for a moment before placing her hand under his chin and lifting his face so that he was looking at her.

"I want you to come with me," Professor McGonagall instructed. She walked quickly out of the classroom expecting Ron to follow. Ron sat for a moment, before grabbing his things and following Professor McGonagall to the hospital wing.


	4. Dismissed

**~ Chapter 4 ~**

**Dismissed**

Ron sat silently on one of the hospital beds with his legs crossed and his head down as he waited for Madame Pomfrey. There was currently no one in the hospital wing apart from himself, for which he was very grateful. He leaned back against the cool, metal bed frame and glanced longingly at the door.

He'd spoken with Professor McGonagall briefly once they'd entered the hospital wing. She had informed him that one of his fellow students had expressed some concern as to his recent behaviour and appearance, but she refused to give any names away. She didn't have to. He knew it had been Hermione who had outed him.

Professor McGonagall had also heard about his recent episode in Professor Snape's class. He could feel his ears begin to burn from the embarrassment. Ron was unbelievably grateful that Professor McGonagall had left the room before he had to speak with Madame Pomfrey. Having one of his teachers in the room while Madame Pomfrey looked him over would have been terribly embarrassing. It was worse than having his mother accompany him to see a Healer.

He looked over at Madame Pomfrey's office just as she shut the door and walked toward him. She handed him a bowl of porridge and a spoon and encouraged him to eat.

"Are you finding your classes are too much to handle this year?" she asked as she walked over to one of her cabinets and rummaged around for a potion.

"No more than usual," replied Ron. He stirred the contents within the bowl before scooping out a spoonful and putting it in his mouth. As porridge went, it wasn't that bad and he really was quite hungry. He couldn't remember the last time he'd managed to eat a full meal in the Great Hall.

He continued to eat as Madame Pomfrey moved from one cabinet to another in search of a potion for Ron. She grunted with satisfaction as she extracted a small, glass bottle from the cabinet. She walked back toward Ron and set the bottle on the table beside the bed.

"I'm going to keep you overnight, just to keep an eye on you," Madame Pomfrey explained. "There doesn't seem to be anything wrong with you except the fact that you appear to not have slept or eaten in awhile. Have you been having trouble sleeping lately?"

"A bit," replied Ron honestly. He didn't bother telling her that, for the last few days, he couldn't fall asleep no matter what he'd tried. He'd lie in bed and close his eyes, but sleep wouldn't come.

"You'll take this for the next few days then," Madame Pomfrey instructed, pointing to the potion. "One spoonful should put you out for six to eight hours. Hopefully that gets you back into a routine." Ron nodded and set the empty bowl in his lap. Madame Pomfrey took the bowl and walked back into her office, closing the door behind her.

Ron slid under the covers of the bed and sighed as he put his head on the pillow. He closed his eyes and attempted to sleep. It was a relief to close his eyes at least. His eyes burned during the day from lack of sleep. He cleared his mind and tried his best to let sleep take him. After thirty minutes, he finally gave up and sat back up. He grabbed the potion Madame Pomfrey had given him and tipped it over his lips. The taste wasn't pleasant, but within minutes he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

---

The clock tower bells chimed loudly through the empty corridors of Hogwarts. Most of the students had gone to their common rooms for the night. Ron walked quietly through the corridors towards the Gryffindor common room, having been released from the infirmary after two days of being on strict bed rest without visitors. He was once again rested, well-fed, and feeling like himself and hadn't had any episodes during his stay in Madame Pomfrey's care.

He approached the Fat Lady's portrait and mumbled the password, which she accepted after making him listen to part of the aria she'd been practicing. The passage into the Gryffindor common room swung open and Ron stepped over the threshold. He made his way through, hoping to get up to the boys' dorms without meeting up with any of the other Gryffindor students.

There were a few first year girls sitting on the sofa in front of the fireplace giggling quietly, but they took no notice of Ron as he crept through the large sitting area and made his way toward the staircase leading to the boys' dorm room. He jumped suddenly as someone called his name. He turned around to see Harry and Hermione walking towards him. They had apparently been standing in a corner, looking at a few posters on the wall.

Hermione reached him first as she had burst into a run as soon as she'd seen him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and squeezed him tightly. She stepped back and looked him in the eye.

"How are you feeling? You look so much better now. Did Madame Pomfrey figure out what was wrong?" Hermione babbled. Ron kept opening his mouth to reply, but Hermione continued with her questions. Finding her behaviour comical, he looked over at Harry with a crooked grin, then, back at Hermione.

"I'm fine," he replied finally. "There was nothing wrong with me."

Hermione frowned, looking taken aback. "That can't be right," she muttered. "Isn't it true that you vomited in Snape's classroom?"

Ron could feel his cheeks burning as the blood rushed into them. It was embarrassing enough having Snape as a witness, it didn't occur to him that the news would get out.

"Who told you that?" Ron whispered, pulling Harry and Hermione aside.

"Dean Thomas," Harry replied. "But I think he heard it from Seamus, who heard it from Cormac, who heard it from…"

Ron rolled his eyes and looked absolutely devastated.

"It is true!" Hermione gasped. "What did Snape do?" Both she and Harry looked at Ron, anxiously awaiting his reply.

Ron shrugged. "Surprisingly he wasn't mad or anything," he replied, thinking back on his last class with Professor Snape. "He told me to either go see Madame Pomfrey or come back here." Harry and Hermione looked at Ron in disbelief. They had both expected Snape to completely humiliate Ron and deter him from returning to his class.

"Well, I'm very glad that you're ok," Hermione enthused. "I really must get to bed, as should the two of you. We've got to be ready for class tomorrow and you have a lot of catching up to do." She looked at Ron before turning and heading toward the girls' dormitory.

---

The Great Hall quickly began to fill up as students wandered in from their classes. Dinner was piled high on each of the four long house tables. Harry and Ron walked the length of the Gryffindor table and sat across from Hermione, Neville, and Luna.

Ginny shuffled down the bench to make room for her brother. She quickly glanced at the message on her enchanted coin and shoved it into the pocket of her robe.

"Kind of short notice this time, Harry," she stated as she helped herself to a roasted chicken wing and mashed potatoes. "What's with the sudden DA meeting today?"

"I've spent a lot of time thinking about our last encounter with Voldemort," Harry replied. "And I think I've found a few more spells, and come up with some new techniques that could help us out the next time we face him and the Death Eaters."

Ron had just grabbed a biscuit from one of the serving trays and placed it on his plate as his muscles began to give out. He placed his forearms on the table just as he lost complete control of his body. He sighed and stared longingly at the food that was right within his reach, but couldn't be obtained.

Ginny had been observing her brother's behaviour the last few weeks and was beginning to understand why he'd been losing so much weight. She had noticed that Ron would usually stay frozen until the food on the table would disappear. While Harry and Hermione bickered over who had actually found the spells they would be using during their DA meeting, Ginny casually took Ron's plate and began filling it with food for him, without attracting anyone's attention. She quietly set his plate in front of him and proceeded to fill her own plate with food.

Ron watched Ginny as she picked up his fork and placed it in his hand, squeezing his fingers toward his palm to keep the fork within his grasp. As soon as she let go of his fingers, they uncurled once again.

"It's there when you're ready," she whispered to him. Ron looked at her, trying to make the expression on his face look grateful, but his face remained relaxed.

He focused on the fork balancing in the palm of his hand and tried to will his fingers to close around it.

"Ron, was it me or Hermione that found the Reflection charm in the book in the library?" Harry asked suddenly. Ron's attention snapped back to the argument between Harry and Hermione. He began to panic, desperately trying to find some way to respond.

"That's not fair," Hermione snapped. "We all know Ron's going to side with you. I was the one that suggested trying to find a spell that could reflect curses!"

Ron breathed a sigh of relief as the attention was once again taken off of him. He listened as Harry and Hermione slowly came to an agreement as to who could take credit for what and gradually regained control of his muscles just as the food was cleared from the table and replaced with dessert.

"Thanks," he whispered softly to Ginny as he began to tuck into the dinner she'd gotten for him. Ginny smiled and cut into her dessert with the edge of her fork.

---

The members of the DA silently exited the Room of Requirement and moved through the corridors toward their various common rooms. Harry, Ron, and Hermione, along with Neville, Dean, and Seamus, rushed through the corridors toward the Gryffindor common room, talking excitedly about how well the DA meeting had gone.

Ron gradually slipped to the back of their little group so that he was following them. He could feel his legs getting weaker as they walked and soon found he had to stop and grab hold of the wall. He tried to call out to Harry or Hermione for help, but found he couldn't. His legs gave out and he collapsed on the cold, stone floor on his hands and knees. He leaned his back against the wall as his body gave out beneath him. He watched as his friends disappeared around a corner, completely unaware that he had fallen behind.

He sat motionless in the darkened corridor, alone and terrified that someone might find him; someone like Malfoy, or Filch, or Peeves.

The silence within the corridor was suddenly broken by the repetitive clicks from the heels of someone's shoes. The sound started quite small and far off in the distance and gradually grew as they made their way closer to where Ron was sitting. The individual footsteps grew into several pairs of shoes walking together. Ron swallowed back at the lump in his throat and closed his eyes, desperately hoping that he wouldn't be seen.

Professors McGonagall, Dumbledore and Snape appeared suddenly around the same corner his friends had previously disappeared. Ron's heart beat rapidly within his chest as he watched the headmaster and his teachers approach.

"Mr. Weasley, is that you?" Professor McGonagall asked. "What are you doing down there?" She and Dumbledore knelt down in front of him and examined the state he was in. Ron looked up at them, then, at Snape, before looking down at his shoes.

"Are you all right?" Professor McGonagall prompted, not receiving any response from Ron. "Can you get up?" Ron looked back up at her and tried to work out a response.

"Let's get him to Madame Pomfrey," Dumbledore suggested. He waved his wand and levitated Ron's body toward the infirmary.

---

Harry, Neville, Seamus, and Dean raced up the stairs to their dorm and started getting ready for bed. Harry stopped suddenly and looked around the dorm having finally noticed Ron's absence.

"Oi, did anyone see where Ron went?" he asked aloud. The other Gryffindor boys shook their heads and looked around.

"He was right behind us," replied Seamus. "Maybe he's downstairs saying goodnight to Granger." A few of the boys let out a few catcalls and raucous laughter. Harry frowned and walked back down to the common area, only to find that everyone had gone to bed, leaving the common room completely empty and quiet.

He raced over to the staircase leading to the girls' dorms and called out for Hermione to come down. Hermione rushed down the stairs in her pajamas with her toothbrush in her hand.

"What is it, Harry?" she asked, looking completely disheveled and worried. "You're going to wake everyone!"

"I don't know where Ron's gone," replied Harry. "Do you remember him coming into the common room?" Hermione shook her head.

"He's going to get into trouble if he's caught out now," Hermione scolded. "Where would he have gone?"

"I dunno," replied Harry. "That's why I came to get you."

"We should go find him then," said Hermione. "I'm sure if we're caught out because we're looking for him we won't get into too much trouble."

"You're suggesting leaving the tower?" Harry asked in disbelief.

"We can't just leave him out there, Harry," said Hermione matter-of-factly. "What if something's happened?

The two of them moved quickly through the common room toward the portrait hole. Hermione set her toothbrush on a table, swung the portrait forward and crawled out of the portrait hole with Harry close behind. The two of them immediately began walking back toward the Room of Requirement in search of Ron. Before they could get too far through the castle, they ran into Professor McGonagall.

"Professor McGonagall," Hermione started. "I'm sorry we're out after hours, but Ron never came to the common room and…"

She was immediately interrupted by Professor McGonagall before she could finish her explanation.

"I was on my way to come and get you two," replied Professor McGonagall. "I'm afraid we've had to send Mr. Weasley home."

"He's been expelled?" Hermione gasped with disbelief. "For what?"

"You can't do that!" Harry snapped. "It's not fair!"

"He has not been expelled, Mr. Potter," replied Professor McGonagall. "I'm afraid your presumptions were right, Miss. Granger, but I'm afraid Ronald's health is much worse than you thought. Madame Pomfrey has requested that his parents pick him up at take him to St. Mungo's as soon as possible."

Hermione and Harry listened as Professor McGonagall explained Ron's condition and requested that they tell Ginny before going to bed. She walked them back to Gryffindor tower and closed the portrait door behind them.


	5. Placing the Blame

**~ Chapter 5 ~**

**Placing the Blame**

Harry jabbed angrily at the food on his plate with his fork. He'd been fuming ever since Professor McGonagall had informed them of Ron's dismissal from Hogwarts. Hermione and Ginny sat silently across from him, watching as he attacked his food.

"Punishing your waffle isn't going to bring him back, Harry," Ginny explained. Harry looked up at Ginny and Hermione and, noticing that both were staring at him awkwardly, he dropped his fork onto his plate and flashed an embarrassed smile.

"I know," he sighed. "I just can't believe I didn't see it coming. Did either of you notice anything different about him?"

"Sort of," replied Hermione. "But I didn't really think anything of it at the time." Harry furrowed his brow and waited for her to explain. "I mean, he's been acting kind of strange for awhile now if you really think about it."

Ginny bowed her head and bit at her lip nervously. "I told Professor McGonagall about him," she confessed. "I noticed that he wasn't eating at meal times because he was kind of… freezing up."

Both Harry and Hermione looked like they were going to be sick.

"I can't believe I didn't pay more attention," Hermione gasped. "Maybe if we'd caught it sooner…"

"Don't do that," Ginny warned. "There's no point in getting upset over what could have been done." Hermione nodded.

Harry looked over at the Slytherin table and scanned the students for Malfoy. Malfoy looked up and caught Harry looking at him, then, quickly looked away.

"I knew it!" Harry hissed. "I knew Malfoy was up to something." Ginny rolled her eyes and sighed. Harry glared over at her and Hermione. "He's been acting strangely all term!" Harry snapped. "I know he had something to do with Katie Bell's incident and I'll bet you anything he's done something to Ron."

"Innocent until proven guilty, Harry," Hermione warned. Harry rolled his eyes.

"Why is everyone so quick to defend Malfoy?" Harry grumbled. The three of them sat silently, picking at their food and thinking about their conversation.

Hermione frowned and looked over at Ginny. "Hang on," she exclaimed. "You told Professor McGonagall?" Ginny nodded and looked Hermione in the eye. "You realize he's going to blame me for that." Ginny smiled and shook her head as she continued to pick at her waffle.

---

Draco Malfoy walked through the streets of Hogsmeade with his head down and his hands in his pocket. He'd left Crabbe and Goyle behind and wandered into the Hogs Head. He sat at a table in a darkened corner and ordered himself a butterbeer.

He watched the bartender closely and slowly sipped at the sweet butterbeer. As he tipped his mug back against his lips, he noticed a movement out of the corner of his eye. He set the mug back onto the table and nearly spit out his butterbeer at the sight of his aunt Bellatrix waving at him from the doorway of a back room.

He stood up and made his way towards the men's lavatory before ducking into the room his aunt had summoned him to. He looked around at the room and grimaced at its appearance. There was a layer of dust on every surface and cobwebs clung to the walls as they moved with the draft within the room.

Bellatrix was leaning against one of the walls, twirling her wand between her fingers as she waited for Draco to close the door behind him.

"Ah, Draco," she sighed as she wrapped her arms around him. "How is my nephew then? You're looking so much older than when I last saw you."

Draco shrugged and looked up at his aunt questioningly. "What are you doing here?" he whispered, looking back at the door to make sure no one was looking in.

"I just wanted to see how Potter's little friend is getting along," Bellatrix replied innocently. "How is the little blood traitor?"

"Weasley?" Draco spat incredulously. "Why would you care about Weasley?" His aunt smiled and giggled mischievously. Draco frowned and looked at the floor as he thought for a moment. "I heard a rumor that he was sent home a few days ago after being sent to the Hospital Wing."

"That'll teach him," Bellatrix sneered.

"What did you do?" Draco asked with a smile.

"I just taught the little blood traitor not to mess with the Dark Lord," she replied. "I suppose the filthy little Mudblood should be taught the same lesson… they dare speak the Dark Lord's name!"

Draco nodded and continued to smile as Bellatrix told him about the curse she'd put on Ron.

---

Molly moved quickly around the Burrow, stopping to stir the stew she was preparing for supper then rushing over to check on the iron she had enchanted to press the freshly laundered clothing.

Ron was sitting silently at the kitchen table, slowly eating a few saltine crackers that his mom had set out for him. Every few minutes, Molly would stop to check on Ron to make sure he was all right before going back to her work.

"Still feeling all right, dear?" Molly asked softly as she made her way from one end of the kitchen to the other. Ron nodded and gave Molly a weak, crooked smile to reassure her that he was still fine.

Molly stopped to look at the enchanted clock on the kitchen wall. The hands with Ron's picture, as well as her own, were both pointing at "home". The hand assigned to Mr. Weasley was moving slowly from "work" to "home".

"Your father should be home any minute now," Molly informed Ron. "Would you help me set the table, please?"

Ron set his saltine cracker back onto his plate and walked to the cupboard to retrieve a few dinner plates. Molly watched as he pulled three plates from the cupboard. She placed her hand gently on his shoulder and smiled. "We'll be needing more than that tonight, dear. We're having company this weekend."

Ron frowned and collected a few more plates. "Who's coming over?" he asked.

"Harry, Hermione, and Ginny," replied Molly with a smile. "I've asked Professor Dumbledore to excuse them for a visit."

"Brilliant!" Ron exclaimed happily. He set the plates around the table along with cutlery and glassware.

"I thought that might cheer you up," said Molly. "I suppose it can get pretty boring hanging out with your mum day in and day out." Ron smiled and hugged Molly tightly. He'd been stuck at home for the last few days with his mother, not allowed to go outside for fear of Death Eaters attacking and with little contact from his friends at school. A mountain of homework was beginning to grow within his bedroom that he still hadn't put much effort into.

"Thanks mum," said Ron gratefully. "I really appreciate it."

"You're welcome, Ron," Molly replied. She held on to him for a few seconds more than she intended, enjoying the moment she had while Ron still appeared to be healthy. "Now, why don't you run upstairs and change out of you pajamas." Ron nodded and moved quickly toward the staircase.

Molly watched as Ron disappeared around the corner and jumped when there was a soft rapping at the door. She looked over at the enchanted clock to ensure it was Arthur that was standing outside the door.

"Who's there?" Molly asked, loud enough to be heard from outside the door.

"That's not the question we agreed to, Molly," Arthur replied from outside. "I could easily be a Death Eater disguised as your husband."

Molly rolled her eyes and crossed her arms irritably. "What did we agree to have for dinner tonight then?" Molly asked.

"Beef stew with extra carrots and a chocolate pudding pie for dessert," replied Mr. Weasley. Molly went to the door and let her husband enter the Burrow. He hung his jacket by the door and looked over at the table.

"Have they arrived yet?" he asked as he observed the number of plates on the table.

"Not yet," Molly replied. She took Arthur's hat and hung it next to his jacket. "I'm expecting them at any moment. Ron's upstairs washing up for dinner."

Arthur moved into the den and sat in his favorite armchair. He lifted the Daily Profit off of the coffee table and unfolded it to read the headlines. Ron ran back down the stairs and into the den to greet Mr. Weasley.

"Ah, Ron m'boy," Arthur greeted. "How are you feeling today?" Ron shrugged and mumbled a reply before sitting on the nearby sofa and looking through the Quibbler. He set the paper down after a few moments and looked up at his dad.

"Anything new at work?" he inquired. "Have there been any more sightings of You-Know-Who?"

"Surprisingly, no," replied Arthur. "There were a few issues with some Death Eaters and a few attacks on some Muggles, but nothing too serious." Ron nodded and looked back at the door expectantly. He couldn't wait to see Harry and Hermione again.

He frowned suddenly as every muscle in his body tightened. He tried to stand up or to reach out for the Quibbler on the table again, but his body refused to move. His eyes widened as his chest tightened. His attempt to breathe resulted in a few choking gasps, which caught his father's attention.

Arthur dropped the Daily Profit on the floor and ran to his son. He sat on the coffee table in front of Ron and gripped his son's shoulders. Molly ran into the room as Arthur shouted her name and gasped as she looked at her son.

The tension in Ron's lungs alleviated, allowing Ron to breathe once again. He looked over at his mom then back at his dad.

"It's all right, Ron," said Molly sympathetically. "We almost made it through the day." She brushed her fingers through Ron's hair and cupped his chin in her palm. She gently pressed her lips against his forehead and patted his shoulder.

"Are you comfortable, son?" Arthur asked. Ron closed his eyes once and looked back at his father. Molly sat next to Ron and held his hand.

"Arthur, go check on dinner, please," she requested softly. Arthur nodded and stepped into the kitchen just as someone knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" he asked.

"Dad, it's us," Ginny replied from the other side of the door. "And I refuse to answer the secret question while Harry and Hermione are listening."

"Just let them in, Arthur," Molly scolded. Arthur had been about to ask their secret question, but closed his mouth again as he looked at Molly. He opened the door and ushered Ginny, Hermione, and Harry inside before locking the door behind them.

Hermione looked over at Ron and smiled at him as she took in his appearance. He'd lost weight since she'd seen him last and he still looked sickly.

"You're just in time for dinner," Molly exclaimed happily. She gently patted Ron on the back and stood up. "Would you like to come and sit at the table, dear?" she asked Ron. Ron blinked twice and stared at the floor. His excitement at getting to see his friends and sister again had vanished as he sat, unable to move, on the sofa in the den. "Oh, don't be silly, Ron," Molly chuckled. "Arthur, bring Ron to the table, please. Come sit, everyone."

Molly pulled a chair away from the table and motioned for everyone to sit down. As Molly, Ginny, Harry, and Hermione sat at the table, Arthur pushed his arms behind Ron's back and under his knees and lifted him from the sofa. Ron's cheeks flushed with colour and his ears began to burn from the embarrassment of being carried around like a child.

"I wish you could have been here earlier," said Molly regretfully. "He was doing so well today." Arthur set Ron on the chair next to Molly then began setting plates of food on the table.

Harry jumped up from his chair and helped Mr. Weasley place dinner on the table. Ron looked up at the food as it was set on the table then back down at his plate.

"Have you figured out what's caused this?" asked Hermione. She looked over at Ron then at Molly.

"Not yet," replied Molly sadly. "We have an appointment at St. Mungo's on Thursday and I have Fred and George coming over tomorrow to see if this might have been caused by something from their shop."

Ron rolled his eyes and sighed. He really didn't want to see Fred and George in his state or have his mother blame his brothers for what had happened to him.

"You think it might have been something he bought at Weasley's?" Harry asked with disbelief. Ron frowned and blinked twice. Hermione looked at him questioningly. Noticing the expression on Hermione's face, Molly looked at Ron and smiled.

"We're working on a blinking system," Molly explained. "One blink for yes, two for no." She ran her hand through his hair, tucking a few strands behind his ear. She stopped suddenly and placed her hand on Ron's forehead.

Ron's entire body began to tremble suddenly. Harry set his fork on the table and watched Ron as he regained his ability to move. Ron grasped the edge of the table and struggled to get out of his chair. He stepped away from the table and collapsed against Arthur who had stood up to help him.

Arthur pulled Ron to his feet and led him over to the kitchen sink. Ron pulled his head over the sink and gagged. Molly leapt from her chair and ran her hand along Ron's back as he dry heaved into the kitchen sink. Having not been able to eat anything in the last few days, Ron had nothing but a few saltine crackers in his stomach.

"You'll have to excuse us for a moment," Molly explained softly. "We'll be right back." She and Arthur led Ron into the den and got to him to lie on the sofa.

Arthur returned to the kitchen and sat back in his chair.

"I'm really sorry, kids," said Arthur regretfully. "He really was looking forward to seeing you."

"Is he going to be all right?" Ginny asked. Arthur shrugged solemnly.

"It's getting worse, I'm afraid," replied Arthur. "He used to be ok after he'd come out of it. As of late he's been getting really ill after each episode."

"When's the last time he's eaten?" Harry asked. "He looks terrible."

"Molly's been trying to get him to eat for days," replied Arthur. "He hasn't been able to keep much down, unfortunately. I don't think he's really been sleeping at all either."

There was a loud crash of breaking glass against the wooden floorboards in the den. Molly screamed for Arthur to come back to help with Ron. Everyone leapt from the table and rushed into the den to see what had happened.

Molly was kneeling next to Ron as he lay on the sofa. Every muscle in his body was tensed and his back was arched up uncomfortably. His fists were clenched tightly and his toes were curled in. He was breathing quickly and tears slid across his cheeks as he waited for the pain to subside. He felt as though every part of his body was on fire and about to rip open or explode.

Hermione clasped her hand over her mouth as a pain-induced scream ripped through Ron's clenched teeth.

Arthur grabbed Molly's shoulders as she attempted to hold Ron and pulled her away. He warned that they may cause Ron more pain than help if they interfered and suggested they wait it out. Ron's head snapped back suddenly and his shoulders twitched sharply to the side. He released another guttural cry, causing Molly to jump. She watched helplessly as her son twitched painfully and struggled to breathe. She looked at his hands and noticed the small pools of blood around his fingernails as they cut into his palm.

Ron's body slowly began to relax, allowing him to breathe without difficulty. Molly wrapped her arms around him, pulling him up against her chest, and held him tight. She could feel the rapid rise and fall of his chest and the uncontrollable trembling of his body against her own. He was fevered and soaked with sweat.

"I think I'm going to be sick," Ron groaned. Arthur quickly ran to the kitchen to get a bucket and handed it to Ron. Molly helped him sit up and ran her fingers through his hair as he clung to the bucket.

"Go along and eat your dinners before they get cold, dears," Molly instructed. "We'll join you in a moment." She nodded at them to encourage them to leave, then, tended to Ron as he gagged over the bucket.

Harry took a few timid steps back then turned and took Hermione's hand. Hermione hadn't taken her eyes off of Ron throughout the entire episode. She hadn't noticed that she'd started crying at some point. She and Ginny followed Harry into the kitchen and sat around the kitchen table.

Arthur entered the kitchen soon after, suddenly looking very tired and upset. They could hear Ron in the other room, his stomach attempting to expel whatever contents were still left.

"Better try to eat something," Arthur instructed quietly. "Molly will be upset if no one eats anything." He walked around the table and put his hands gently on Hermione's shoulders. "He's going to be all right." Hermione was still sobbing softly as she looked down at her plate of food.

Ginny quickly jabbed her fork into her dinner and placed some of it in her mouth just as Molly walked into the room. Harry looked at Ginny and quickly copied her to keep Molly happy.

Molly walked further into the scullery and rummaged through one of the wooden cabinets. She removed a small, glass bottle from the cupboard and walked back toward the den.

"Should we be giving him anything when we don't know what's wrong?" Arthur asked. Molly stopped in the doorway and turned back toward Arthur.

"It's just something to relieve the pain," replied Molly. "The poor dear can't even sit still he's in so much agony." Arthur nodded and watched as Molly disappeared around the corner.

"Has this happened before, dad?" Ginny asked as she set her fork back on the table. Arthur shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger.

"No," he sighed. "This was new." He sat at the head of the table and poked absently at his food with his fork.


	6. How Do You Solve a Problem Like Ron W?

**~ Chapter 6 ~**

**How Do You Solve a Problem Like Ron Weasley?**

Mr. Weasley excused himself from the table and wandered into the sitting room to check on Ron. Ginny stood up and started clearing the table, unable to sit and do nothing any longer. Hermione quickly got up and started helping Ginny. She needed to get her mind off of what had happened to Ron.

Harry watched as the two girls rushed around the kitchen, keeping themselves busy. He looked over at the door of the sitting room and pushed away from the table. Without bringing attention to himself, he walked quietly over to the door of the sitting room and pushed it open a crack.

"We should take him to the emergency ward of St. Mungo's," said Molly as she ran her fingers through Ron's hair. Ron was lying on the sofa with his head on his mother's lap. His eyes drooped closed and fluttered back open again as he tried to stay awake.

"Once he's recovered a bit," Arthur suggested. "We can't use the Floo network because of the Ministry and Apparating with him right now is out of the question." Molly nodded and looked over at the door as it creaked open.

"Come in Harry, dear," Molly invited softly. Harry felt his cheeks get warm as his face filled with colour. He hadn't meant for Mrs. Weasley to see him peaking in. He stepped timidly inside and made his way over to Mr. Weasley's side.

"How is he doing?" Harry asked, almost inaudibly. Mr. Weasley patted the table, motioning for Harry to sit with him.

"I think it's finally over," Molly replied. "His colour is coming back a bit now and the shaking has stopped." Harry watched as Ron's body relaxed, then, flinched as he slipped between consciousness and unconsciousness.

"Close your eyes, dear," Molly instructed. "Get some rest."

"Should I summon a Healer to come to here?" Arthur asked.

"We'll see how he does within the next hour," Molly suggested. "If he gets worse, we'll summon a Healer." Arthur nodded. They all knew it was important to get Ron help, but the Weasley's had enough financial trouble as it was. Calling a Healer to the house would devastate their finances.

---

Harry stretched within the warmth of his bed in Ron's room and took a moment to remember how he'd gotten there. He could hear Mrs. Weasley in the scullery downstairs preparing breakfast for her houseful of family and guests. The smell of waffles had already begun to waft up the stairs to where Harry was sitting.

He grabbed his glasses and pulled them onto his face before running his hands through his hair and making his way down the stairs towards the kitchen. The boards of each step creaked and groaned beneath his weight, alerting Mrs. Weasley to his presence before he'd even reached the bottom of the staircase.

"Good morning, Harry, dear," she greeted cheerfully. Harry turned the corner into the kitchen to find everyone, including Ron, already sitting at the table.

"About time you got up," Ginny scoffed. "We were starting to get worried when Ron got up before you did." Harry smiled and pulled up a seat next to Ron.

"Morning, mate," he grunted to Ron. "How are you feeling?"

"Not bad," replied Ron. "A little hungry, but otherwise pretty good." Mrs. Weasley looked back at him and smiled as she stacked a serving tray with waffles. She moved toward the table and placed the plate in the centre, motioning for everyone to tuck in.

Ron leaned forward and lifted a waffle onto his plate before slathering it in maple syrup. Molly watched her son eat his breakfast just as he had before he'd become ill. She held her tongue, wanting to tell him to slow down and possibly suggest that he try some dry toast instead, but he looked so happy and she didn't want to ruin his mood. Looking him over, she did notice that he was beginning to look a bit better than he had the previous night.

Ron cut into his waffle and looked at it for a moment before looking up at his mom. She quickly looked away, not wanting Ron to know she was staring at him. He pressed his lips together and considered the waffle in front of him. He sighed and cut his piece even smaller before popping it into his mouth. Molly smiled and moved back into the scullery to retrieve the fruit salad she had made.

There was a loud crack outside the front door that made everyone jump. Ron swallowed and turned to look at the door. Arthur, Molly, and Harry had their wands out of their pockets and pointed toward the door within seconds. Ron looked from the door to the glass of milk that had toppled over when Harry had grabbed his wand. The creamy, white liquid slid along the table and began dripping onto the floor next to Ron's feet.

"Who's there?" Arthur demanded as he approached the door.

"You'd think they'd show some appreciation, us being early and all," Fred complained sarcastically.

"Really makes you feel unwelcome, doesn't it," George replied with a smile. Arthur rolled his eyes and opened the door.

"You know how to make a Patronus," Arthur sighed. "You could give us some warning before you Apparate on the doorstep and scare us half to death."

"Nice to see you too, dad," said Fred as he patted his father's shoulder and made his way over to the table.

"How's our ickle Ronniekins feeling this morning?" George asked. "You look dreadful."

Ron rolled his eyes and turned back to his plate, determined to finish an entire meal for the first time in a long while.

Molly flicked her wand and cleaned the milk from the table and the floor. She summoned another glass of milk for Harry and proceeded to put out table settings for the twins.

"It's lovely to see you, boys," said Molly. "How is business?"

"Booming," replied George.

"Can't complain," replied Fred. "We've had to hire on some help in order to keep up with everything."

"Apparently not even You-Know-Who can affect our shop," George laughed. "I wouldn't be surprised if he became one of our customers. Even evil gits need a laugh, yeah?" Fred snorted and took a bite of his waffle.

"Wouldn't mind using him as a guinea pig for our new Putrid Pellets," Fred laughed.

"While we're on the topic of guinea pigs," Arthur began.

"We haven't gotten Ron to test anything since fourth year," George interrupted.

"He sent us a message by owl to warn us you'd be asking," Fred explained.

"For once, we're completely blameless," said George.

"Feels quite liberating, actually," Fred laughed.

"Don't get used to it," Ron laughed.

Molly intercepted a flying grape, thrown by Fred, to avoid a full-out food fight in her kitchen. She placed it back on Fred's plate and shot him a look of warning. She looked over at Ron and frowned.

"You drop that plum, Ronald Weasley," she scolded. "I will not have you lot throwing perfectly good produce at the table."

Ron looked up at her apologetically, then, down at his hand. He sighed and tried to avoid eye contact with his brothers as his hand continued to grasp the plum.

"Oh, I'm sorry, dear," said Molly regretfully, realizing that Ron was going through another episode. Hermione frowned questioningly over at Ron, then, over at Ginny. Ginny shrugged and looked up at her mom.

Ron sighed and continued to avoid eye contact with everyone in the room. It was bad enough getting caught in the act of starting a food fight with his brother, but being frozen in that position made him feel even worse. He could feel the blood rushing into his cheeks and up to his ears. He tried to distract himself by staring at the half-eaten waffle that he knew he wasn't going to be able to finish. His stomach growled in reply to his own thoughts.

Fred and George were unusually quiet as they watched their little brother cling motionlessly to the plum in his hand. Arthur lifted Ron from his chair and carried him to the living room. He sat Ron on the sofa and put his hand on Ron's knee, waiting for him to regain mobility.

Fred and George watched Arthur until he was completely out of view. Molly sighed and sat at the table.

"Are you absolutely positive you haven't given him anything?" Molly asked, sounding defeated. Both Fred and George shook there heads and looked at everyone around the table. Everyone picked silently at their breakfasts.

Harry's stomach grumbled angrily. He hadn't eaten his dinner the previous night because of Ron's episode and he really wasn't in the mood for breakfast now. He reluctantly stabbed his waffle with his fork and chewed the sweet bread as he listened to Arthur speaking to Ron in the other room.

Just as Harry cut up the last of his waffle, Ron and Arthur walked back into the room. Molly frowned and leapt from her chair. She placed her hand on Ron's forehead and looked at him questioningly.

"No nausea?" she questioned as she looked him over. Ron shook his head and smiled.

"I must be getting better," he replied happily.

Harry and Hermione watched Ron questioningly as he sat back in his chair at the table and ate the remainder of his waffle. His sudden recovery after everything he went through the night before did not make sense.

---

Harry wandered quietly into Hogwarts' library. The room was filled with the sounds of flipping pages, quills scraping against parchment, and hushed conversations. He searched through each aisle of bookcases in search of Hermione. He'd already looked in the Gryffindor Common Room, the Great Hall, and their usual places to hang out, but hadn't had any luck in finding her. The library was the only place left that he thought she might be.

As he rounded the corner of the last set of bookcases, Harry caught sight of the back of Hermione's head. Her unruly brown hair hung loosely over her shoulders and along her back. He quickly approached the table and sat across from her.

"There you are, Harry," she whispered. "I was hoping you'd come."

"What are you doing?" Harry whispered back. He looked over at the list Hermione had written on a roll of parchment.

"I'm trying to figure out what is causing Ron's symptoms," Hermione replied. "There has to be something triggering them."

"Find anything yet?" Harry asked. Hermione sighed and shook her head.

"No," she replied sadly. "Maybe you can help though. What were we doing on Saturday at breakfast?"

"Talking to Fred and George," Harry replied. "And eating waffles."

"And the night before he had been eating crackers and talking with Mr. Weasley," Hermione added. "What about the night he was sent home from Hogwarts?"

"We had a D.A. meeting and were working on Patronus Charms and Stunning Spells," said Harry.

"And the day before at breakfast?" Hermione asked as she jotted points onto the parchment.

"Eating and discussing the D.A. meeting," replied Ginny as she joined Harry and Hermione at the table.

"I'm not seeing any common factors as to what could be making Ron sick," Hermione huffed. "Eating is the most common, but he wasn't eating every time he got froze up."

"I'm sorry, Hermione," Harry groaned as he scratched the back of his head. "I'm really not seeing anything here." Hermione chewed at her lip and studied the list written on the parchment. "I'm still convinced that Malfoy is behind this."

Both Ginny and Hermione rolled their eyes and looked at one another.

"Why is everyone so quick to defend him?" Harry snapped angrily.

"Why are you always so willing to condemn him?" Ginny asked. "It's Malfoy we're talking about. I really don't think he's smart enough to pull something like this off on his own." Hermione giggled and quickly cupped her hand over her mouth to keep from disturbing the other library patrons.

"I know he's behind this in some way," said Harry determinedly. "And I will find out what he's done with or without your help." He pushed away from the table and stormed out of the library in search of Malfoy.

---

*A/N*

Thanks to ObsessedRHShipper, FashionistaSolange, and Damier. Ron's symptoms are related to anyone mentioning Voldemort in any way (You-Know-Who, He Who Must Not Be Named, etc).

I apologize for the speed the story is moving at. The first time I wrote each chapter I thought it was moving to quickly so I intentionally tried to slow it down. I'll speed it up in the next chapters and add more action/suspense.

Keep reading and reviewing. I love to see what you think of each chapter.


	7. Insight

**~ Chapter 7 ~**

**Insight**

Molly Weasley pushed through the kitchen door of the Burrow with an armful of vegetables she'd picked from the garden. She pushed the garden gnome that was pulling at her shoelace away and closed the door before he could get into the house. With Ron home sick she couldn't find the time to rid the garden of gnomes and they were beginning to overrun the place.

She moved into the scullery and plopped the vegetables onto the counter before enchanting them to wash and dice themselves. She shuffled through the kitchen and into the living room where Ron was sitting, listening to the Chudley Cannons game commentary on the wireless.

Although he hadn't had any episodes since Harry, Hermione, and Ginny had come to visit, he still wasn't sleeping or eating as much as she knew he could. His complexion was far too pale and he too thin in Molly's opinion.

"Hey, mom," Ron yawned as he sat up and looked over at Molly. "Do you need some help in the kitchen?"

Molly chuckled to herself and smiled. "You really must be bored." Ron flashed his crooked smile at her and shrugged. "I'm just getting lunch started. You sit and relax and listen to the rest of your game. We'll take the Floo Network to St. Mungo's in about and hour." Ron nodded and sank back against the sofa. Molly smiled sadly and walked back into the kitchen.

"It looks like Galvin Gudgeon has spotter the Snitch!" the commentator exclaimed. "No, I'm mistaken… that's a sparrow Gudgeon's chasing. Well, folks, it's going to take finding the Snitch for the Cannons to win this match. The score is 90 to 10 for the Appleby Arrows… and will you look at that; Joey Jenkins has knocked himself out with his own bat."

Ron snorted and rolled his eyes. His favourite team hadn't won a match since 1892, but at the very least they were entertaining when they played.

"We interrupt this broadcast for a You-Know-Who update," the commentator continued. "It seems as though You-Know-Who was seen terrorizing the small village of Godric's Hollow. Apparently he was seen entering the local cemetery with a few of his Death Eaters and left within the hour. There is no word on what You-Know-Who wanted or why he was there… From what I've heard though, Voldemort tends to hang out in graveyards with his mates. Creepy bloke, yeah? Anyway, let's get back to the game… if you can really call this a game…"

Ron grabbed a piece of parchment and a quill from his stack of homework and scribbled the words "Voldemort" and "Godric's Hollow Cemetery". He figured Harry and Hermione would want to hear about Voldemort's recent endeavors.

His stomach turned as he set the parchment between two pages of his Potions text book. He grimaced and gripped the sofa cushion as he waited for the nausea to subside.

Molly called Ron into the kitchen for lunch as she placed the chicken pies and steamed vegetables on the table.

Ron stood up and slowly made his way to the kitchen, clutching his stomach tightly with both arms. He pushed the door to the kitchen open and looked over at his mother. She had her back turned to him as she set everything on the table.

"Mom?" Ron groaned. He breathed deeply through his mouth and waited for Molly to turn around. "I don't feel good." Molly dropped the bowl of boiled potatoes she was holding as she turned to look at he son.

Ron leaned forward as blood dripped from the corner of his mouth and splattered onto the stone floor. Molly clasped her hand over her mouth and rushed over to her son. He gagged and spat another tablespoon of blood onto the floor at his feet.

"You're ok," said Molly as she pulled Ron over to the fireplace. She grabbed a handful of Floo powder and shouted the name of their destination with such force that Ron trembled beneath her touch.

Ron was rushed through the emergency ward of St. Mungo's. Molly pulled him hurriedly by the wrist toward the reception desk, trying to catch the attention of the Healers rushing around the ward.

Ron caught sight of two young twin boys with Dragon Pox sitting between their parents on a bench near the front entrance. Another man, just a few years older than Ron's father, was walking around with a tail protruding from the seat of his pants.

A young, female healer, with black hair and green eyes, smiled as she took Ron by the arm and led him to a small, curtained room with a hospital bed, a wooden chair, and a set of drawers where the healers kept the instruments they needed.

Ron pulled himself onto the bed and leaned forward as a wave of nausea caught him off-guard. He spat the mouthful of blood onto the tile floor as his mother ran her hand along his back to comfort him. He continued to lean forward as blood trickled out of the corner of his mouth and onto the floor.

---

Arthur made his way up to the second floor of St. Mungo's and walked through the corridor, searching for room 236. Molly met him at the door and squeezed him tightly.

"How is he?" Arthur grunted within Molly's grasp.

"He's sleeping," Molly replied. "Healer Quattlebaum fixed the ulcer when we got here. After all the vomiting he's done, he wore a hole right through his stomach lining."

"What about the fits?" Arthur asked nervously.

"They have no idea," Molly replied. "They've checked him over and they couldn't find anything wrong." Arthur let go of his wife and looked into the room where Ron was sleeping. If he hadn't been snoring, Arthur would have assumed Ron was dead where he was laying. His face had no colouring left and his arm was hanging limply off the edge of the bed.

He and Molly walked further into the room and sat next to the bed. Molly lifted Ron's arm and placed it gently across his stomach. She rubbed his arm, attempting to warm him up, before pulling the thin blanket over him.

"What now?" Arthur asked softly as he pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes.

"The Healers want him to stay for a few days," Molly replied. "They're hoping he'll have one of his fits while he's here and maybe they'll have some idea of what's wrong with him."

The two of them sat silently, hand-in-hand, watching their youngest son sleep for the first time in over a week.

---

Ron sat up in bed and listened to the constant excitement in the corridor outside his room. He'd been at St. Mungo's for two days without any episodes. The Healers were at a complete loss as to what was causing his symptoms and were waiting for Ron to go through an episode so that they could come to some sort of conclusion and heal him.

Molly and Arthur came to visit Ron daily; Molly, two or three times daily. His room was filled with pictures, balloons, sweets, and Chudley Cannons memorabilia. Fred and George had sent over a few gifts from their shop to use on a few of the Healers for a laugh. Ron had grown quite fond of most of the Healers that checked on him, most of all Healer Callaghan, a pretty little witch with light brown hair and a smile that crinkled her nose. She came to check on him often and brought him extra pudding with his lunches.

"Hey, Ron," greeted Healer Callaghan as she walked into his room with a lunch tray. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine, thanks," Ron replied. He sat up a little higher in bed and smiled. Healer Callaghan set the lunch tray on the table next to Ron and checked his forehead for a fever.

"You're not as warm as you were the last time I checked on you," she said happily. "Is there anything else I can get for you?" Ron shook his head and casually ran his hand through his hair.

"Your mom is just down the hall," she continued. "You better eat something before she gets here. She seems to be very upset about how skinny you are." Ron chucked and lifted the tray onto his lap.

"Thanks, Julie," said Ron. She smiled and left the room just as Molly walked in.

"You seem to be charming the ladies," she chuckled as she sat next to the bed. "What would Hermione think?"

Ron choked on the sandwich he had just taken a bite of and looked at his mother. "What's that?" he coughed.

"I've seen the way she looks at you," Molly smiled. "That girl completely adores you."

"Mom!" Ron gasped as he dropped his sandwich back onto the tray in his lap.

"I'm sorry, dear," Molly laughed. "I didn't mean to embarrass you. We won't talk about girls anymore."

Ron swallowed the half-chewed sandwich in his mouth and avoided eye contact with his mom.

"I've brought you some things to keep you busy," Molly continued. She stacked a few letters, two issues of the Quibbler, and the latest edition of the Daily Profit onto the table next to Ron and sat back in her chair.

"I meant to bring the letters yesterday," Molly explained. I forgot them on the kitchen table on my way here. They're all from Hogwarts… mostly Harry and Hermione. There's one there from Ginny as well."

Ron took another bite of his sandwich and shuffled through the letters his mom had brought him.

"No homework?" Ron asked happily.

"Just a few text readings," Molly replied. "Professor Dumbledore is meeting with your professors tomorrow to discuss how your assignments should be done." Ron grimaced and tore open one of the letters from Harry.

"I've got to go back to the Burrow," said Molly. "Try to get those reading done so you're prepared for any assignments. I'll see you later tonight." She kissed Ron's forehead before getting up and leaving him alone in his hospital room.

Ron read through the letters and placed them back on the table, intending to reply to them after his lunch. He opened up the Daily Profit and immediately began scanning the latest article about Voldemort.

---

"Don't worry, sweetheart," Mrs. Weasley comforted softly. "We'll fix this. We'll find a way to fix this." She cupped Ron's chin between both of her hands and wiped the tears from his cheeks with her thumbs. She maintained a brave face as she kissed his forehead and stood up.

"We'll come back and see you before we leave, son," said Arthur softly as he placed his hand on Ron's shoulder. He and Molly turned and slowly left the room. Arthur quietly closed the door behind them and turned to find Fred and George standing next to them.

"Fred! George!" Molly exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"We brought a little something for Ron," replied George.

"Thought it might help him recover sooner," Fred added.

"Front row seats to the Chudley Cannons playoffs," George continued.

"He'll be able to see the players' sweat from these seats," Fred boasted.

They stopped short when Molly burst into tears. She pushed herself against Arthur's chest and continued to sob as he wrapped his arms around her.

"What did we say?" George whispered. Both he and Fred looked completely confused.

"It's a great gift," Arthur confessed. "But maybe it would be best if you waited to tell him about it. Just until he's feeling a little better."

Harry and Hermione walked up behind Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Dumbledore had given them permission to leave Hogwart's to visit Ron at St. Mungo's and they had met up with Ron's parents down on the first floor. The Weasleys had seemed flustered at the time, so Harry and Hermione had gone up to the fifth floor gift shop to give Mr. and Mrs. Weasley some time alone with Ron.

Harry and Hermione approached the door to Ron's room and entered before Arthur explained to the twins what had happened to Ron.

Harry closed the door softly, making hardly any sound. They found Ron sitting up in bed with his knees tucked into his chest and his face buried into his knees.

Hermione was the first to timidly approach his bedside. "Ron?" she asked softly. "Are you all right?" Ron slowly raised his head. His eyes, once bright and green, were clouded over with a foggy, white film. They moved rapidly, trying to locate the general direction in which he'd heard his name called.

Hermione gasped, cupping her hand over her mouth and taking a step back. Harry moved closer to Ron's bedside and frowned as he examined Ron's eyes from a distance.

"What happened?" Harry asked as he sat on the end of Ron's bed.

"Dunno," Ron mumbled as he wiped his cheek with his sleeve. "I woke up this way."

---

A/N:

Thanks to everyone that has read and reviewed my story so far. I hope you're all still enjoying it.

No worries, Damier. I have no intentions of not finishing this story. I just find it hard to find the time to write each chapter. That said… I'm very sorry for the long gap between the last chapter and this one.

I'll try to add the next chapter soon. At the very latest, I'll update by the Remembrance Day long weekend (Canadian holiday, for those of you unfamiliar with it).

Please let me know what you thought of this chapter as well as the rest of the story so far. I love to hear from you.

Thanks for reading up to this chapter!!!


	8. Discoveries

**~ Chapter 8 ~**

**Discoveries**

Ron was lying on his side, staring, unseeing at the wall across from his hospital bed. He had his back to the door of his room and was curled up tightly under the thin, blue blanket the Healers had provided for him.

He could hear the footsteps of the Healers, patients, and visitors in the corridor outside his room. One set of footsteps separated from the crowd and quietly entered Ron's room. Ron listened to the footsteps as they approached him, but didn't bother to sit up. He clutched the pillow tightly in his hand and waited for the person in his room to say something.

He could feel the bed sink further beneath him as the visitor sat on the side of the bed next to his knees.

"Hey, squirt," a deep, gruff voice broke the silence. "It's Charlie. How are you doing?"

"Fine," Ron mumbled, still not moving. Charlie Weasley sat forward to look into his little brother's face. He smiled sadly as he examined the clouds within Ron's eyes, covering the once brilliant blue irises.

"Bill's here too," Charlie explained. "He'll be here in a minute. He's just talking with mom." Ron nodded and sighed deeply.

"Looks like one of the Healers brought you lunch," Charlie continued, trying to get Ron to converse with him. "Doesn't look that great, but there are two servings of pudding. Do you want some?"

"I'm not hungry," Ron sighed, just as his stomach growled loudly. Charlie smiled and put his hand on Ron's arm.

"You've always been a terrible liar," Charlie said with a grin. "Come on. Sit up and have something to eat." Ron shook his head. The smile on Charlie's face faded and he pulled his arm away from Ron.

"Mom says you get to come home later today," said Charlie, speaking more softly now. "That's good, yeah?"

Ron shrugged and chewed on the side of his lip. "The Healers can't fix me," Ron mumbled. "They're giving up and sending me home." Bill walked into the room just in time to hear Ron's remark. He looked over at Charlie with an expression of concern. Charlie shrugged and looked back at Ron sadly.

"I don't think that's true," said Charlie.

"From what I hear, the Healers are sending you home so you don't die of boredom here," Bill added. He pulled up a chair and sat near the head of the bed so he could look at Ron. Ron frowned and tried to focus on where Bill had sat down.

"Bill?" Ron asked.

"Hey, Buddy," Bill replied as he ruffled Ron's hair.

"Did Mum get the whole bloody family?" Ron grumbled.

"You're surprised?" Charlie chuckled.

"She just needed a few strong bodies to carry all of your crap out of here," Bill humoured. "Shit, Ron. Did you leave any of your stuff at home?" Ron tried not to smile, but both of his brothers caught the crooked grin.

"Come on, Ronnie," Bill grunted as he stood up and stepped away from his chair. "Go get ready so we can get the hell out of here." He gripped Ron's shoulder and pulled him up. Ron rolled his eyes and kicked his legs over the side of the bed.

"You'd better hit the shower," Charlie added. "No offense, but I've worked with animals that smelled better than you."

"Yeah, Ron. You're not going to win the ladies over with your looks," Bill smirked. "The least you could do is smell nice."

"Shut up!" Ron retorted with a smile. "You're one to talk."

Bill shoved Ron in the arm playfully and pulled him off of the bed. He led Ron over to the bathroom and helped him find the shower.

"Please tell me you can do the rest yourself," Bill joked. "I did not sign up for bathing duty."

"Sod off," Ron chuckled. "I can manage on my own."

"See you in a bit," Bill replied, dropping the humour and sounding more compassionate. "I'll start packing your things. Call me if you need anything."

Ron smiled and felt for the doorknob. "Thanks, Bill. Thanks, Charlie."

"No worries, squirt," Charlie replied as he passed Ron a pile of clean clothes. Ron shut the bathroom door and locked it before feeling his way over the shower and pulling his shirt over his head.

---

Harry walked slowly down the staircase from the Gryffindor boys' dorm room and entered the common room. Hermione was sitting in front of the fireplace, legs crossed beneath her, with stacks of parchment surrounding her. She scribbled something onto a large piece of parchment before looking back at a smaller piece.

Harry approached Hermione and sat on the sofa behind her. He reached down to grab a piece of parchment from the floor, but Hermione quickly slapped his hand. Harry retracted his hand and looked at Hermione with surprise.

"Don't mix them up," Hermione instructed without looking at Harry.

"What are they?" Harry yawned. He stretched out his arms and cracked his neck against his shoulder.

"I'm trying to find a common factor with Ron's symptoms," Hermione replied.

"How's it coming?" Harry asked. He sprawled along the sofa and rested his cheek on his hand. He looked at the large piece of parchment Hermione had been writing on and tried to decipher what she had written.

"I think I've found something," Hermione replied. "Do you remember when we visited with Ron at the Burrow?"

"It's quite hard to forget, Hermione," Harry snorted. "Go on."

"I spoke with Mr. Weasley and he said that Ron had sat down with him to chat when he got home from the Ministry. Ron was reading the Quibbler before his fit." She passed Harry the copy of the Quibbler she had taken from the Burrow."

"So, the Quibbler is making Ron ill?" Harry scoffed.

"Close," replied Hermione. "Ron also had a fit after our DA meeting." Harry waited expectantly. Hermione rolled her eyes, knowing Harry was going to take a while to figure out what she had already learned. "What were we talking about at the meeting, Harry?"

Harry shrugged. "Spells, counter-curses, Voldemort, Death Eaters, N.E.W.T.s, Weasley products…"

Hermione quickly cut him off. "Okay, and when Ron froze up in the Great Hall at lunch, what had we been doing?"

"Eating, talking about the DA meeting, arguing about who found the Reflection spell, reflecting on the battle at the Ministry," Harry listed each one on his fingers as he focused on remembering what had gone on at breakfast over one month ago.

"What about when the twins showed up at breakfast at the Burrow?" Hermione continued.

Harry rolled his eyes. "I think this would be a lot easier if you just told me, Hermione," he sighed. "I'm not seeing anything in common with any of those examples."

"Every time Voldemort is mentioned, Ron has a fit," Hermione sighed. "Fred and George were joking about Voldemort purchasing items from their shop, this issue of the Quibbler has a two page article about Voldemort's recent activities, and at the DA meeting we had been talking about having to fight Voldemort." She looked up at Harry and shook her head. "Come on, Harry. It makes sense!"

"How does that make sense?" Harry asked. "How can talking about Voldemort be making Ron ill?"

"I don't think he's ill," Hermione replied. "There has to be something magical causing this. Maybe Voldemort cast some sort of spell on Ron to get you to surrender yourself to him. I don't know for sure what has happened to Ron, but it has something to do with Voldemort."

"Malfoy!" Harry growled.

Hermione rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "Must you immediately blame Malfoy for everything?!" She snapped. "Honestly, Harry. Do you really think Malfoy could have figured out how to do something like this to Ron?"

"I think everyone underestimates him, yeah," snapped Harry. "And tomorrow morning, he's going to tell me exactly what he's done to Ron."

Hermione shook her head in frustration as Harry climbed off of the sofa and made his way up to the boys' dormitory.

---

Molly rushed through the kitchen, quickly tidying up the mess left from dinner. Charlie and Bill had gone with Arthur to the Ministry, leaving Molly alone to look after the mess.

She peeked into the sitting room at Ron and smiled when she saw him sleeping on the sofa. He was snoring softly, having fallen asleep listening to the latest wizarding news on the wireless.

Molly quietly walked through the sitting room, trying not to make any noise, and gently covered Ron with the blanket she had knit for Arthur the previous Christmas. She gently pressed her lips against Ron's forehead and turned off the wireless. She heard enough from Arthur about Voldemort and his followers. She didn't want to hear any more about him than she had to. Once the wireless was off and the room was quiet, apart from Ron's heavy breathing, she silently walked back to the kitchen.

She jumped when she heard a quiet rapping at the door. She leaned close to the door and asked who was standing outside.

"It's just us, Molly," Tonks replied from the other side of the door. "You called us to come watch Ron."

Molly pulled the door open and greeted Tonks and Remus with a smile. She hurried them inside and quickly began fixing her two visitors a drink and a few snacks.

"Thank you so much for coming," said Molly. "I hate to bother you, but I have a meeting with Dumbledore and I just can't wake Ron up. He hasn't slept in over a week and he really does need his rest."

"It's not a problem, Molly, really," Tonks replied with a smile. "We're happy to do it." Molly smiled and clapped her hands together.

"I'll only be gone an hour," Molly instructed. "There are potions in the cupboard for Ron if he wakes up. He was supposed to take one half an hour ago, but I didn't want to wake him." She grabbed her jacket from the coat rack and squeezed herself into it. "If you need anything, you can reach me at Hogwarts." Tonks smiled and took Remus's hand.

"We'll take good care of him, Molly," said Remus. "You don't need to worry." Molly nodded and made her way over to the fireplace.

"Thanks again," said Molly with a hint of sadness. She felt terrible leaving Ron is his state. She grabbed a handful of Floo powder and tossed it into the fireplace before saying the name of her destination and stepping inside.

Tonks smiled up at Remus before pulling him toward the sitting room. She quietly pushed the sitting room door open to check on Ron. He was curled into the sofa and breathing heavily through his mouth. Tonks smiled and closed the door behind her. She pushed Remus away from the door and led him over to the kitchen table.

"He's fine," she whispered. "He's still sleeping." Remus nodded and relaxed into the wooden chair Tonks had led him to.

In the sitting room, Ron began to stir. He pushed himself into a sitting position and rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands. He grimaced suddenly as a wave of dizziness overcame him. A high pitched ringing grew rapidly in his ears.

He stood up and steadied himself with the arm of the sofa before feeling his way over to the kitchen where he could hear a hushed conversation between two people. He pushed the door open and slowly made his way into the room.

"Mum?" he groaned as he was hit with another wave of dizziness. Tonks quickly stood up and made her way over to Ron. She quickly grabbed Ron's arms to keep him standing upright.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart," said Tonks softly. "Molly had to run out for a moment. She asked Remus and me to stay with you while she was gone."

Ron had begun to pant heavily and swallowed back the urge to vomit. Remus walked up behind him and put his hands on Ron's shoulders.

"Are you all right, Ron?" he asked with concern. Ron's knees gave out suddenly, causing both Tonks and Remus to grab him and help him to the floor. Remus summoned a pillow using his wand and placed it under Ron's head just as Ron arched his back and every muscle within his body tensed.

Tonks knelt next to him and rubbed his arms while trying to calm him down. Ron gasped for breath as his body relaxed and tensed once again. He cried out and gripped at the floor boards, causing his fingernails to dig into the wood.

"Should we summon someone for help?" Remus asked, looking worriedly into Tonks' eyes. Tonks shook her head and brushed Ron's hair out of his eyes.

"No," she replied as calmly as she could. "We wait it out and tell Molly when she gets back." She could see Ron's body beginning to relax and his breathing slow to a more normal pace. "It's almost over," she soothed. "Just try to relax now."

Ron's eyes stared, unmoving, up at the ceiling, giving Remus a chance to examine them more closely. The fog over Ron's eyes was swirling in circles over his irises.

"Let's get you comfortable, m'boy," he suggested softly. He tucked his arms under Ron's body and lifted him off of the kitchen floor. Tonks opened the sitting room door and followed Remus as he placed Ron back on the sofa.

Tonks pulled the blanket back over Ron's body and placed her hand on his forehead. She sat on the coffee table next to Remus and tried to read his expression. Remus watched as Ron drifted back to sleep, unable to stay awake any longer.

"What is it, darling?" Tonks asked softly with concern.

"That looked more like the Cruciatus than a fit," Remus replied.

"What are you talking about?" Tonks asked. "We were the only ones in the room and I certainly didn't cast a Cruciatus curse."

"I don't think anyone did," Remus replied. "But I think we've been looking at Ron's symptoms all wrong."

"Meaning?" Tonks asked expectantly.

"Meaning I don't think Ron is sick at all," Remus replied. "I think he's been cursed."

"But the Healers at St. Mungo's…" Tonks interjected.

"Were looking for an illness, not a curse," Remus retorted as he got to his feet.

"We have to tell Molly," Tonks exclaimed. Remus nodded in agreement. Tonks leapt from where she was sitting and pulled Remus back into the kitchen. Remus quickly looked back at Ron to make sure he was all right before willingly following Tonks out of the room.

"What are you doing?" Remus asked as Tonks led him over to the fireplace. "We don't need to interrupt Molly's meeting with Dumbledore. Ron will be fine until she gets back. I'm only guessing, Tonks. I don't know for sure that Ron isn't sick."

Tonks nodded and sat at the Weasley's kitchen table. She looked up at the Weasley family clock and watched as Molly's hand remained, unmoving, at 'Hogwarts' along with Ginny's.

Outside the Burrow, Bellatrix Lestrange stepped away from the kitchen window with a smile spread across her face. Draco had informed her that Ron had been sent to St. Mungo's and that the Healers had come up with nothing to help the Weasleys.

Her plan was working out far better than she could have imagined. With the way things were working out, a new plan was beginning to develop in the back of her mind.

---

_A/N: Thanks again for the reviews. I hope I didn't keep you waiting for this chapter too long. I got it done quite a bit sooner than I had intended. I hope you enjoyed it and keep watching for the next chapter!!_

_Please continue to r 'n r to let me know what you think of the story thus far._


	9. Silenced

**~ Chapter 9 ~**

**Silenced**

"Your turn, Ron," Charlie instructed softly. "I moved my knight to F9. I'll be able to take out your bishop from here."

Ron sighed and carefully felt a few of his chess pieces. The two of them had initially begun playing Wizard chess, but it Charlie had decided to remove the charm from the pieces in order to keep Ron from getting frustrated. It also gave Charlie a chance to correct Ron's moves without him knowing. Charlie watched the expression on Ron's face. Ron's eyes were looking past the chess board and into Charlie's chest. Ron bit at the side of his lip and fumbled with the chess piece between his fingers.

"Is this my queen?" Ron mumbled quietly.

"That's your rook, buddy," Charlie replied patiently. He gently took Ron's hand and placed it over another chess piece. "There's your queen. If you move her forward she'll be behind your pawn and I'll be able to take her out with my pawn. If you send her diagonally to the right, you'll take out my knight."

Ron puffed out his cheeks and blew a puff of air through his lips.

"Charlie, this isn't working," he said, defeated.

"Sure it is, squirt," Charlie replied, light-heartedly. "You have more pieces on the board than I do."

"You're letting me win," Ron said as he rolled his eyes.

"I wish I was," Charlie chuckle, slightly embarrassed by the fact that his blind brother was beating him at chess. Ron smiled his crooked smile and shook his head sadly.

"Charlie?" He asked quietly. "Do you think I'll be like this forever?" He looked up at Charlie, but ended up staring at sofa cushion behind him. Charlie smirked and shifted over to meet Ron's gaze.

"I wish I knew, squirt," Charlie sighed. He watched as Ron's eyes watered and moved to look down at the table. "Don't worry about it, Ron. If there is a way to fix it, we will find it."

Ron nodded and lifted his rook from the chess board. He placed the rook three squares forward and sat back on his heels.

"Queen to H4," he mumbled. Charlie smiled and quietly placed Ron's rook back on its initial square and moved his queen to square H4.

"Good move, squirt," Charlie encouraged.

---

Ron cautiously descended the staircase from the bathroom. He gripped the rail and felt for the surface of the next step with his toe before stepping down.

He could hear his mom and Bill in the kitchen preparing lunch for their company. Ginny, Harry, and Hermione had planned to come back to the Burrow for the weekend to visit and give Ron support as he learned to deal with his inability to see.

Ron ran his hand along the wall and headed toward the kitchen. Having lived in the Burrow his entire life made it somewhat easier to get around. He knew the floor plan well enough to get from room to room with little difficulty.

Before he finished stepping over the threshold to the kitchen, Bill was greeting him and pulling him into the room. Ron stumbled slightly with the quick movement. He gripped Bill's arm tightly and tried to regain his balance.

"How are you feeling, darling?" Molly fussed as she pushed Ron's hair away from his eyes.

"Alright," Ron replied. "What's for lunch?"

"You tell me," Bill suggested as he plopped something into the palm of Ron's hand. Ron frowned and closed his fingers over the unknown food.

"Is this edible?" Ron asked, not sure if he should trust Bill. Bill pushed him playfully and chuckled.

"Has there ever been a time you couldn't trust me?" Bill asked, pretending to be hurt by Ron's distrust.

Ron grinned and timidly smelled the food in his hand.

"Just eat it!" Bill insisted.

Ron popped the food in his mouth and chewed carefully. The flaky roll melted in his mouth with a hint of meat and eggs.

"Yorkshire pudding," Ron stated before swallowing.

"Don't talk with your mouth full, Ron," Molly scolded.

Ron swallowed and blushed slightly. The smell of their lunch hit him suddenly and he smiled.

"Roast beef and mashed potatoes," he announced. Bill slapped Ron lightly on the back and laughed. "Why are you going through so much trouble for lunch?"

"We told Mum she had to quit fussing over you," Bill replied before Molly could speak. "So she didn't know what to do with herself."

"You watch yourself, Bill Weasley," Molly chuckled.

Bill apologized with a laugh and pulled Ron toward the back door. Molly quickly gasped and stopped herself from telling Bill to keep Ron inside. Poor Ron hadn't been exposed to fresh air in weeks because she was afraid Death Eaters would attack at any time. However, seeing as it was Bill taking Ron outside, she didn't have it in her to stop them.

Bill pushed the half-door open and pulled Ron outside for a brotherly chat while they waited for Ginny, Harry, and Hermione to arrive.

---

The dishes from supper had been washed and put away. Bill, Charlie, Arthur, and Harry were asleep in the sitting room, snoring loudly. Fleur was sitting in the kitchen with Molly and Ginny, discussing her most recent wedding plans while the two Weasley women tried their hardest not to groan and roll their eyes.

Hermione peeked into the kitchen and quickly stepped away from the door, not wanting to be pulled into Fleur's conversation about flower colours and enchanted butterflies.

She slowly made her way up the stairs. Ron had excused himself quite some time ago to shower and change into his pajamas and hadn't come back down. She walked all the way to the top floor where Ron's tiny bedroom was located. She could hear ghoul banging around in the upper attic. She always wondered how Ron could sleep through ghoul's noise.

Hermione knocked on Ron's door softly and pushed it open. She clasped her hand over her mouth and turned her back quickly as Ron quickly grabbed the towel from his bedpost.

"I'm so sorry, Ron," Hermione rambled quickly. "I didn't realize you were…"

"Its fine," Ron muttered. "I… um… I'm having trouble finding my pajamas." He grunted as he wrapped the towel around his waist and bumped into the open drawer of his dresser.

"Would you like some help?" Hermione asked after a moment of awkward silence.

Ron stood silently and clutched his towel tightly to keep it from falling off of his waist.

"Yeah," he sighed, defeated.

"Are you…" Hermione began, still with her back to Ron.

"I'm decent, yeah," Ron chuckled. Hermione blushed and turned to walk into Ron's room. She looked over at Ron and caught herself staring at the muscles that protruded from his abdomen. He was still slightly wet from his shower and his skin seemed to glisten in the lamp light.

Hermione licked her lips and approached Ron's dresser. She rummaged through a few of his drawers in search of a pair of pajama bottoms for Ron. Everything had been thrown in, unfolded, making it difficult for Ron to feel out his shirts from his pajama bottoms.

"Red or blue?" Hermione asked as she grabbed hold of two pairs of flannel pajama bottoms near the back of the drawer.

"Red's fine," Ron mumbled. He had his eyes to the floor and seemed to quite uncomfortable having just been caught naked by one of his best friends. Hermione handed Ron the red, checkered bottoms and watched as he fumbled to put them on with one hand while holding his towel up with the other. Hermione grinned and tried not to laugh.

"Do you want me to leave?" she asked. He picked up the laugh in her voice and bit his lip.

"Uh… no, it's fine," he replied. He pulled his pants over his thighs and dropped the towel as he fumbled while pulling the waistband over his hips. Hermione stepped behind him and blushed, not wanting to make Ron anymore uncomfortable. She sat on his bed and waited for him to throw his towel aside and sit with her.

"Are you starting to get used to it?" Hermione asked.

Ron snorted and scratched the back of his head nervously.

"Not really," he replied. "I can get around fine, but it's hard to do some things… obviously." Hermione giggled and pulled Ron's hand away from the back of his neck. The smile faded from Ron's face and he bit at his lip.

They'd both had feelings for each other for quite some time, but had never acted on them. They hadn't been alone together for quite awhile. Usually Harry was with them, or Ginny.

"Are you sure you're ok?" Hermione asked. She avoided looking up at him and played with her fingers nervously.

"Mmm hmm," Ron replied softly. Hermione took a deep breath and quickly turned and pressed her lips against Ron's. Ron's eyes widened and he sat in shock for a moment before closing his eyes and returning her kiss.

Hermione gripped Ron's hand tightly as the fingers of his other hand tangled into her hair and cupped the back of her head.

Their lips parted and Hermione sat back slightly. She looked into his eyes and breathed heavily. She watched as the clouds in Ron's eyes circled and moved in intricate patterns.

"I really wish I could see you right now," Ron breathed.

Hermione smiled and wrapped her arms around his waist. She rested her head under his chin as he pulled her close with one arm.

They shot apart suddenly as they heard heavy footsteps climbing up the stairs toward Ron's room. Hermione quickly stood up and rummaged through Ron's drawers for a shirt.

"Hey!" Harry greeted tiredly as he entered the room. He looked over at Hermione questioningly as she pulled a black, sleeveless t-shirt from Ron's drawer.

She smiled and threw the shirt over to Ron. It landed on top of his head, covering his reddened face.

"What's going on?" Harry smiled accusingly.

"Ron was having trouble finding a pajama shirt after his shower," Hermione replied innocently. "I just offered to help."

Harry nodded and grinned mischievously. Hermione half-frowned, half-smiled and threw a bunched up sock at Harry's head. Harry caught the sock and tossed it back into Ron's drawer before heading over to the cot Molly had set up for him.

Ron pulled the shirt over his head and pushed himself back so he was sitting with his back against his head board.

"It's backwards and inside-out, mate," Harry laughed.

"This sucks!" Ron groaned as he pulled the shirt back over his head and fixed it.

"What sucks?" Harry asked. He tossed his own socks onto the floor and covered himself with the multi-coloured quilt Mrs. Weasley had made for him.

"All of this," Ron growled with frustration. "I've become a bloody Squib!"

"It's only temporary, Ron," Hermione encouraged as she sat on the end of Ron's bed. "Once you get back to St. Mungo's they'll figure out how to break the curse and you'll be fine."

"And what if Voldemort attacks before then!" Ron argued. "I'm a bloody target and I won't even be able to see him coming!"

"Ron, don't say that name!" Hermione gasped. She and Harry hadn't yet told Ron about their discovery.

Ron frowned and tried to look in Hermione's direction. "What? Voldemort?" he asked, confused. "Why not? I thought we decided it was better to call him by name from now on."

"Ron, stop! Please!" Hermione choked. She watched as Ron's expression changed from confusion to shock.

"Harry, go get help!" Hermione shouted suddenly as Ron choked and tried to catch his breath. Harry leapt from his bed and ran to the top of the stairs to call to anyone to help. Rapid footsteps could be heard immediately ascending the stairs.

"Come on, Ron," Hermione sobbed. "Please breathe."

Ron grabbed at his neck and continued to choke, unable to get air into his lungs.

Charlie ran into the room and forced Ron onto his side. He ran his hand along Ron's back and glanced into Ron's open mouth.

"Is he choking on something?" Bill asked quickly.

Hermione shook her head and stepped back, not wanting to get in the way as the two eldest Weasley children attempted to get Ron breathing again.

"No, he just quit breathing," Harry replied. He listened as Ron gasped and gurgled, his lips quickly turning blue.

"Relax and breath, squirt," Charlie demanded, unable to do anything more to help Ron out.

"Please, do something!" Molly sobbed hysterically as her baby boy began losing his fight.

Ron twitched awkwardly and his hands dropped away from his throat.

"Don't you dare go to sleep!" Bill snapped as Ron's eyelids began to droop.

Just as Ron's eyes slipped shut, he took a deep breath and panted steadily. Everyone in the room breathed an audible sigh of relief and released the tension in their bodies.

"Open your eyes, Ron," Charlie ordered softly. "You can't go to sleep yet."

Ron's eyes slid open and he attempted to look up at his brother. Bill grabbed Ron's hand tightly and knelt next to Charlie.

"How do you feel?" Bill asked.

Ron mouthed the word 'tired', but no sound came out. He frowned and cleared his throat before attempting the word again without success. He swallowed the lump building in his throat and gripped Bill's hand tightly.

He sat up quickly and tried to call out to his brothers, but he couldn't produce any sound.

"Oh, no," Hermione sobbed.

"What?" Ginny asked with a frown. She looked over at her brothers and waited for Ron to say something.

"It's getting worse," Molly wailed, pushing herself into Arthur's chest.

--

Harry descended the stone staircase leading down to the dungeons of Hogwarts with unnecessary speed. He skipped over the last two stairs and ran into the cold, dark corridors.

Harry walked with a purpose, searching for a familiar face through the crowds of students as they headed for their classes and other commitments.

As Harry neared the entrance to the Slytherin common room, Draco Malfoy stepped outside and looked up at him with an angry scowl.

Without warning, Harry grabbed Malfoy by the collar of his robes and pushed him against the grimy, stone wall. Malfoy whimpered and looked down at his feet, which were slightly lifted off of the floor.

"I know you cursed Katie Bell, Malfoy," Harry growled through his clenched teeth. "But you entered dangerous territory when you chose Ron as your next victim."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Malfoy blubbered.

Harry gritted his teeth tightly and pushed Malfoy harder against the wall. Malfoy yelped and grabbed hold of Harry's arms. His eyes darted around the corridor, in search of someone to help him.

"Tell the truth!" Harry bellowed. "I know it was you. Reverse whatever you did!"

"It wasn't me," Malfoy grunted. "I swear. It wasn't me."

Harry dropped Malfoy to the floor and pulled his wand from his back pocket. He held his wand in front of Malfoy's face and glared at him threateningly. He could see beads of sweat forming along Malfoy's greasy hairline.

"Why don't I give you a taste of what you've done to Ron?" Harry suggested with malice.

"Ok, ok," Malfoy whimpered. "He's been cursed, but it wasn't me! I don't even know what kind of curse it was." He cowered on the floor and held his arm out in front of his face to keep Harry from hitting him in the face with a hex or curse.

"What was it then?" Harry snapped. "And how do we fix it?"

"I don't know," Malfoy lied. "All I know is that he was cursed. I can't tell you who told me." He cringed, waiting for Harry to cast a spell. He waited a few seconds before stealing a glance at Harry.

"I'm not leaving until you tell me who cursed Ron," he grumbled angrily.

"I can't," Malfoy sobbed. "I would tell you if I could, I swear."

"_Levicorpus_!" Harry shouted as he flicked his wand up.

Malfoy's body shot off of the floor and he dangled, upside down, in mid-air before Harry. He yelped and tried to grab at a nearby torch to keep himself from falling to the floor when Harry released the curse.

"It was my aunt!" Malfoy bawled. "Bellatrix! She did it!"

Harry frowned and released the spell on Malfoy. Malfoy toppled to the floor, pulling the torch from the wall as he fell.

"If I find out you're lying," Harry threatened. "You'd better hope I never find you." He shot an angry look at Malfoy before walking quickly back to the staircase to find Hermione.

Malfoy stood up and wiped the dust off of his robes before running back to the Slytherin common room to cower where Harry couldn't attack him again.

---

A/N:

Thanks to everyone that wrote reviews for the last chapters. They are very much appreciated.

Damier, that wasn't the last chapter. There's still much more to come. ; 0 p I know Ron's eyes are blue in the books, but I much prefer Rupert Grint's Ron than the Ron I picture in the books, so I'm making Ron's eyes green like Rupert's.

I seem to be on a roll at the moment with my updates. Keep your eyes open. The next chapter will be up in no time!

Shameless Plug:

Come check out my new fanfiction blog at "kohala8 dot blogspot dot com"


	10. Personal Struggles

**~ Chapter 10 ~**

**Personal Struggles**

"Come on Beel, we must get to ze shop before eet closes," Fleur groaned impatiently from the kitchen door. Bill bit his lip and looked over at Ron.

Ron was sitting at the kitchen table with his knees pulled up to his chest. He had his long arms wrapped tightly around his legs and his chin rested on his knees. He stared blankly at the wall across from the table and absently pulled at his pant legs.

"Go, Bill," Molly coaxed. "We'll be fine here. I'll take Ron with me to Hogwarts when I go meet with Dumbledore."

Bill's mouth opened and closed as he willed himself to say something. He looked back at Fleur and nodded.

"We won't be long," Bill announced. "I'll be back as soon as I can." He watched for a reaction from Ron, but didn't get one. He turned away sadly and took Fleur's hand. The two of them stepped outside and Disapparated out of sight.

Ron slipped quietly off of his chair and slowly wandered in to the sitting room. He ran his fingers along the walls to keep from bumping into anything and made his way over to the sofa.

Molly followed quietly behind and leaned up against the doorframe of the sitting room. She watched as her baby boy curled onto his side and pulled a pillow under his cheek.

"I'm almost ready to go, sweetheart," Molly said softly. "I'll come get you as soon as I've finished the ironing." Ron nodded slightly and closed his eyes. He just wanted to be left alone. Hogwarts was the last place he wanted to be. He didn't want anyone to see him in this state.

He listened to the sounds around him. He could hear his mom ironing the clean laundry. Pigwidgeon fluttered somewhere near the sitting room window, probably chasing some of the stray garden gnomes away from the house. He could even hear ghoul mucking about somewhere in the attic.

"Ron?" Molly called from the kitchen. "It's time to go, darling."

Ron sighed and pushed himself off the sofa. He slowly made his way through the sitting room, bumping his leg on the side of the coffee table hard enough to make him cringe. He brushed off the pain and entered the kitchen. Molly immediately took him by the hand and led him over to the fireplace.

Gripping Ron's hand tightly, Molly grabbed a handful of Floo powder and shouted "Hogwarts" as clearly as she could. As they stepped into the fireplace, Ron could feel his feet lift off the floor and his stomach tighten as they were ripped from the Burrow. His feet connected with a solid surface once more and the familiar sounds of the Burrow's kitchen were replaced by the quiet song of a Phoenix and snoring portraits.

He could hear a chair being pushed across a stone floor and light footsteps making their way toward him.

"Ah, Molly, it's so nice to see you again," Dumbledore greeted. He placed his hand gently on Ron's shoulder and squeezed it encouragingly.

"Good to see you, Mr. Weasley," he spoke softly as he took in Ron's appearance. "How are you feeling?"

Ron shrugged and forced a lopsided grin to let Dumbledore know he was fine. Dumbledore pulled his hand away from Ron's shoulder and led them both out to the corridor. As they descended the staircase and walked past the gargoyle that guarded the Headmaster's office, Ron desperately prayed that no one would see him.

"I informed Mr. Potter, Ms. Weasley, and Ms. Granger that the two of you would be arriving," Dumbledore explained. "They seemed quite excited about your visit."

Ron's head dropped as he heard hurried footsteps approaching through the corridor. Molly ran her fingers through his hair and smiled.

"Don't worry, darling," she encouraged. "I won't make you stay long."

"Ron!" Hermione exclaimed as she, Harry, and Ginny ran toward him. Ron raised his head to face their general direction and smiled warily. Hermione's hand slipped into his and she squeezed it tightly.

"Hey, mate," Harry greeted.

"Don't take him far," Mrs. Weasley instructed. "We won't be long." Harry looked up at Dumbledore. He had told Dumbledore about Malfoy's confession the previous night, which was why Mrs. Weasley had come to Hogwarts. Dumbledore was going to explain everything and help Molly figure out how to help Ron.

Hermione pulled at Ron's hand and led him through the corridor.

"We'll go to the common room," she explained. "That way you won't be approached by anyone you won't want to talk to." Ron snorted silently. He really didn't want to have contact with anyone at Hogwarts.

They ascended the staircase at Ron's pace and entered through the portrait of the Fat Lady. Ron could hear the familiar sounds of Gryffindor Tower. Two people were playing chess in a corner while a few other Gryffindor students sat talking on the sofa near the fireplace. The room grew silent as Ron walked inside further. He gripped Hermione's hand tightly as blood rushed into his cheeks and ears.

"Ron? Is that you?" Neville blurted. "It's good to see you, mate. We've really missed you around here."

Ron smiled weakly and stood in the spot where Hermione had stopped. He felt as if he were on display.

"You lads mind if we sit down?" Ginny asked the boys on the sofa.

"Not at all," Seamus replied as he and Dean stood up and made room on the sofa for Ron and his friends. They grabbed some chairs from the table behind the sofa and pulled them up next to the sofa to visit with Ron.

Hermione led Ron over to the sofa and waited for him to sit down before sitting next to him. Harry and Ginny sat on the floor near the fire and faced the sofa.

"Is it true you were cursed by a Death Eater?" Dean asked.

Ron shrugged and gazed down at his own feet, not knowing where else to look.

"Be careful what you say," Hermione stated quickly. "He'll get worse if we say the name of the wizard that no one speaks of, or mention that person in any way."

Seamus frowned and looked over at Dean.

"Really?" he asked. "That's intense!"

"Has anyone figured out how to fix this?" Dean asked as he tried to catch a glimpse of Ron's eyes.

"Bill's tried a few things," Ginny replied. "And the Healers at St. Mungo's have tried loads, but nothing's worked yet."

"I'm really sorry, mate," Neville mumbled. "That's rough." Ron nodded and scratched the back of his head nervously. Hermione casually pulled his hand away and held it between both of her own.

"Just relax," she whispered. "We're all your friends here. No one thinks any different of you." Ron smiled and faced Hermione. She smiled back and cupped the side of his face in her hand. She stopped suddenly and looked over at Ginny and Harry. Both of them were grinning back at her.

Hermione quickly dropped her hand and sat up straight, embarrassed that she'd been caught flirting with Ron.

---

Ron stood at the kitchen sink and tore pieces of lettuce into the sink for his mom. She had him help her in the kitchen whenever she could to keep him from going stir-crazy. There weren't many things Ron could to do around the Burrow, so she made an effort to find things for him.

Ron had been feeling strange all morning. The inside of his head felt strangely heavy and his muscles tightened on their own every once in awhile. He didn't know how to tell anyone how he was feeling, so he was trying to wait it out and see if it went away on its own.

He could hear his mom putting dishes away somewhere nearby while Charlie and Bill were sitting at the kitchen table discussing dragons and Egyptian tombs.

The longer Ron listened, the harder he found it to hear the movement around him. The fog inside his head soon completely took over and he felt himself lose consciousness.

His body, however, remained erect. His eyes became clear and the colour changed from blue to black. He stepped away from the sink and grabbed a cleaver from the kitchen cupboard.

Charlie frowned and got up out of his seat.

"Ron, what're you doin'?" Charlie asked curiously. Ron lifted the cleaver and stepped closer to Molly, who had her back turned to him.

"Expeliarmus!" Charlie shouted as he pulled his wand from his back pocket. The cleaver flew out of Ron's hand and landed deep in the surface of the cupboard. Ron quickly turned to Charlie and attempted to grab his own wand from his back pocket.

Bill quickly got up and pulled the wand away from Ron before wrapping his arms tightly around him to keep him from moving.

Ron growled and squirmed within Bill's grip. Molly turned around just in time to see her two eldest sons tackling Ron and pinning him to the ground.

Ron kicked and screamed within his brothers' grip as he tried to escape. Charlie grabbed Ron's chin and stared into Ron's eyes.

"What the hell happened to his eyes?" he exclaimed just as Ron spit in Charlie's face.

"Boys, what are you doing?" Molly shrieked. She sank to Ron's side and examined Ron's face. Ron glared up at her with pure hatred.

"Let go of me, you filthy blood traitors!" Ron growled. Molly took a step back and brought her hands up over her mouth to cover her shocked expression.

Ron pulled his arm out of Bill's grip and sharply connected his fist with the side of Charlie's face. Charlie grunted and sat back for a moment before grabbing his wand.

"What are you doing?" Bill asked.

"A body bind," replied Charlie.

"Don't," Bill snapped. "We don't know how additional magic will react with this curse. Let's not make it worse." Charlie nodded and pushed his hands against Ron's thighs to keep him from kicking at anyone.

This is ridiculous," Bill muttered breathlessly as he used all of his strength to keep Ron's arms under control. "We've got to find a way to fix him before he kills somebody."

He watched as Ron's eyes slowly lightened back to blue and once again clouded over. Ron's body stopped fighting against its human restraints and his head fell to the side. Bill and Charlie cautiously released their grip on Ron and waited.

Ron's eyes flutter open and he frowned, not knowing how he had ended up on the floor.

"Hey, squirt," Charlie said uneasily. "How are you feeling?" Ron moved his head to face Charlie and looked at him questioningly.

"You had a bit of a fit, Ron," Bill explained. "Are you feeling all right?"

Ron nodded and attempted to sit up. Bill quickly put his hand under Ron's shoulder blades and helped him to his feet. Molly quickly wrapped her arms around her baby boy and fought the urge to cry.


	11. Trial and Error

As promised… an update during the Remembrance Day weekend…

---

**~ Chapter 11 ~**

**Trial and Error**

Molly wandered down the staircase, calling Ron's name. Normally when he heard her calling he would give her some sign to let her know where he was; knock on a wall or throw something to make some noise. Just as she was beginning to panic, she heard one of her dishes smash against the stone floor in the kitchen.

She threw the door open and gathered Ron into her arms. He stood, shocked within his mother's arms before returning the hug timidly.

"You very nearly scared me half to death," Molly breathed as she flicked her wand and repaired the shattered plate on the floor. "We really need to figure out a better way for you to let me know where you are, dear." Ron stepped out of his mother's hug and backed into the kitchen table.

"Remus and Tonks are on their way here," Molly explained. "I believe Dumbledore might be coming with them as well. Run along and clean yourself up before they get here, please."

Ron nodded and carefully made his way upstairs to shower and change.

When he returned to the kitchen, Tonks, Remus, and Dumbledore were sitting at the Weasley's kitchen table talking with Molly, Arthur, Fleur, Bill and Charlie. Ron gently tapped on the door to alert them to his presence before entering the room.

Molly looked up at her son and smiled. "Sweetheart, your shirt is on inside out," she chuckled. Much to his embarrassment, Molly pulled at the waist of his shirt and pulled it over his head to flip it around. Ron stood nervously, waiting for Molly to pull his shirt back over his head and end his humiliation. The only thing she could do to make it worse was lick her finger and rub dirt off of his face.

He could feel the blood burning in his cheeks and ears as she led him over to a free chair.

"Molly, dear," said Arthur softly. "Why don't you and Fleur head over to Fred and George's place. Invite them to dinner tonight."

Molly looked over at Arthur skeptically and crossed her arms over her chest. "What are you lot going to do that you don't want us to see?" she asked angrily. Arthur pulled her aside and whispered softly.

"We're going to induce one of Ron's fits," Arthur replied. "Remus, Tonks, and Albus think it would help if they saw how they've progressed since this all started. Maybe it will help them figure out how to remove the curse."

Molly looked over at her clueless baby boy and shook her head.

"I should be here for him," she said sadly.

"It's too dangerous," Arthur stated. "He could have killed you last time. He's in good hands, darling."

After much convincing, Molly and Fleur stepped outside and Apparated to Diagon Alley.

"Shall we begin?" Dumbledore asked as he stood up and approached Arthur. Ron frowned and turned his head to where Dumbledore had been sitting.

"We're going to need your wand, squirt," said Charlie as he pushed away from the table and stood up.

"Why?" Ron mouthed. He placed his hand protectively over his back pocket and faced Charlie with a confused expression.

"Don't worry," said Charlie. He ruffled Ron's hair with the palm of his hand and sighed. "Tonks, Remus, and Dumbledore are going to try to figure out a way to help you."

Ron reluctantly handed Charlie his wand and rested the palms of his hands on the wooden table. He bit nervously at his bottom lip, not knowing what to expect.

"Voldemort," Remus stated suddenly. Ron's eyes widened and he shook his head. He pushed away from the table and backed away.

"It's all right, Ron," Arthur said calmly. He walked around the table and closed the sitting room door, preventing Ron's exit. Ron gripped the door handle as Remus repeated the Dark Lord's name.

Bill quickly ran to Ron's side and gripped his arms, pulling his away from the door. Ron could feel his muscles begin to tighten and his ears began to ring. He gripped at Bill's hand and shook his head wildly.

Bill pulled Ron close and hugged him tightly, trying to calm the frantic boy. He could feel Ron shaking uncontrollably within his grasp. Moments later the shaking stopped and Ron's arms dropped to his side. Before Bill could pull away, Ron shoved him back with incredible force and sent him stumbling into the kitchen counters.

Ron glared directly at Remus, giving Remus the opportunity to examine Ron's blackened irises. Arthur and Charlie quickly gripped Ron's arms before he could grab for anything that could be used as a weapon. They pushed him to the floor and held him down while Tonks, Remus, and Dumbledore knelt next to him.

Tonks gripped Ron's chin tightly and gazed into his eyes. Ron gritted his teeth and growled obscenities at them.

"Very strange," Dumbledore noted as Ron threatened to kill them all. "It would appear to be not unlike the Imperious Curse." Tonks nodded and released Ron's face.

"How long does it usually last?" Remus asked, keeping his gaze on Ron's eyes.

"No longer than a few minutes," Arthur grunted as he struggled to keep Ron immobile.

"I'm going to kill you, fucking blood traitors," Ron spat.

"How fascinating," Dumbledore muttered as he watched Ron's eyes lighten and return to their cloudy state. Ron stopped fighting against his brothers and father and lay, panting and shaking on the floor.

"All right, Ron?" Tonks asked softly. Ron closed his eyes and nodded.

"Up you get, then," Charlie encouraged as he pulled Ron to his feet. He led Ron over to a chair and sat him back down. Remus took Ron's hand and placed a bar of chocolate in his palm.

"Eat up, Ron," said Remus cheerfully. "The chocolate will make you feel better." Ron reluctantly took a bite of the chocolate and dropped his head.

---

Ron sat quietly on the sofa in the sitting room, absently picking at a loose thread on the sleeve of his shirt. He had turned the wireless off some time ago and had been sitting in silence ever since. He could hear his mum moving around in the kitchen. She'd finally stopped checking in on him every five minutes. With not being able to see or speak, Ron was beginning to wonder if he could die of boredom. He couldn't wait to be normal again.

There was an increase in noise from the kitchen as Arthur, Bill, and Charlie returned from the Weasley's detached garage. An excited conversation soon became a heated exchange between Arthur and Molly. Ron frowned and quietly stood up. He made his way over to the door of the sitting room and listened to the argument between his parents.

"I don't want our son participating in your dangerous Muggle activities in his state," Molly snapped.

"Molly," Arthur sighed. "Fishing is not a dangerous activity. You can't keep the poor boy locked indoors for the rest of his life. He needs to get out… experience new things… continue to live his life."

"It's not forever," Molly objected. "Just until he's better."

Arthur pinched and the bridge of his nose and shook his head sadly. "We don't know if he's going to get better, Molly." Arthur responded, lowering his voice considerably. "We have no idea if the curse is reversible."

Ron swallowed the lump building in his throat and frowned just as Bill walked into the room.

Bill stopped suddenly and looked at Ron with shock. "Ron, you really shouldn't be listening to them," Bill whispered apologetically. Ron's eyes began to water and he turned quickly away from the door.

Bill stood in one spot and watched as Ron stormed through the sitting room and kicked over one of the side tables. Ron sent bottles of Firewhiskey and glasses flying across the room and against the sitting room walls.

Molly, Arthur, and Charlie ran into the room and stopped when they saw Ron destroying everything he could get his hands on. Molly put her hand over her mouth and looked over at Bill.

"What's happening?" Molly asked. "Is this another fit?"

Bill shook his head and placed his hand on his mother's shoulder to keep her from approaching Ron. "He's fine. Just give him a minute," Bill whispered. "Don't worry. I'll clean it up."

Charlie took Molly's hand and pulled her back into the kitchen. She followed reluctantly, keeping her gaze on Ron as he lifted one of her ceramic vases and smashed it against the floorboards. Arthur followed after his wife and son and closed the door behind them.

Bill crossed his arms and leaned back against the wall and waited for Ron to wear himself out.

Ron lifted a bottle of Firewhiskey over his head and flung it to the ground with both hands before grabbing his hair in both hands, gritting his teeth, and dropping to the floor. He pulled his knees to his chest and cried silently into them.

Bill pushed away from the wall and slowly approached Ron. Without a word, he sat next to Ron and wrapped one arm over Ron's shoulders.

"What's wrong, buddy?" Bill asked softly.

Ron's mouth moved rapidly as he soundlessly tried to explain his problem to Bill. Bill watched Ron's mouth intently, trying to decipher the muted explanation.

"Slow down, Ron," Bill instructed. "I'm not catching any of that."

Ron wiped his face on his sleeve and leaned his head back against the frame of the fireplace. His eyes stared up at the ceiling and he bit at his bottom lip. He shook his head, stood up, and made his way up the staircase to his bedroom to be alone.

Bill watched as Ron disappeared up the staircase and closed his eyes, feeling defeated. He sighed and flicked his wand without a word. Every broken item in the room magically repaired itself and flew back to its place in the room. When Bill walked back to the kitchen, there was no evidence of Ron's rage ever having happened.

"Bill, what happened?" Molly asked as soon as he entered the room. "Is he all right?"

"He heard you and Dad talking," Bill replied. "About not getting better." Arthur shook his head and rubbed his face with his hand. Bill could faintly hear his father cursing under his breath.

"I'll go talk to him," he mumbled as he headed for the staircase.

"Dad, wait," Bill interjected. "Just give him time to cool off. Let him think things through for a bit."

Molly watched Arthur for a moment before approaching him and placing a hand on his shoulder. "Maybe the fishing thing isn't such a bad idea," she suggested uncertainly. "Maybe he should try some new things to help him come to terms with all of this." Arthur nodded and cupped his hand over Molly's.

"But I don't want to find a hair out of place on that boy when you get back," she warned.

---

Ron awoke the next morning to find his shoes no longer on his feet and his body covered with a light quilt. His mother had obviously come to check on him before she'd gone to bed and tucked him in for the night.

He kicked the blanket off and slipped out of bed. He pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it on the floor before rummaging through his drawers for a clean one.

As he headed down the staircase in his clean clothes, he could hear the faint sound of Fred and George laughing in the kitchen along with Bill, Charlie, Fleur, Molly and Arthur.

He pushed the door of the sitting room open and walked silently into the kitchen. He tried not to draw any attention to himself as he approached the table and sat somewhere near Fred… or possibly George. Previous to his illness, he would have gone unnoticed, but he was a focal point within the family now. The moment he'd entered the room, the volume in the room decreased considerably.

"Good morning, dear," Molly greeted him cheerfully. "I hope you're hungry." She set a plate in front of him with biscuits, bacon, and eggs before returning to the previous conversation.

"Muggles actually wear those?" George laughed as his father modeled his Muggle fishing apparel for his family. He was wearing rubber overalls, rubber boots, and an oversized fishing cap adorned with numerous fishing hooks.

"As far as I know," replied Arthur. Although he studied many Muggle items, he wasn't knowledgeable about any of them. He removed the fishing hat and placed it on Ron's head as Ron gingerly felt his plate to figure out what he was eating and how it had been placed on his plate.

"I hope you're ready for a day of fishing, Ron," Arthur said enthusiastically. "It's going to be a perfect afternoon for a father and his sons."

He flinched as the hat covered the top of his head and the hooks jingled in his ears. He raised his hands to his head to remove the foreign object, but his actions were prevented as someone grabbed his wrists.

"Careful there, Ronnie," said Fred as he lifted the hat off of Ron's head. "It's a bit sharp." Ron frowned, confused as to how a hat could be sharp, but shrugged it off and went back to exploring his breakfast.

"Tuck in, boys," Arthur encouraged. "We'll be leaving right after breakfast."

"And Molly and I weel begeen to make dinner for you," said Fleur happily. Molly forced a smile before turning around and rolling her eyes. Arthur smiled and sat down at the table to eat his breakfast.

"Do you even know how to work these things?" Charlie asked as he examined the Muggle fishing rods Arthur had brought home from work.

"It's actually quite simple," replied Arthur. He had Charlie pass him one of the fishing rods and demonstrated how the fishing rod worked. The fishing hook zipped through the air and hooked onto one of the coats on the coat rack next to the door. As Arthur reeled it back in, he ended up pulling the coat rack over and dragging it across the room. Molly put her hands on her hips and began lecturing Arthur on using Muggle items in the house. Ron lifted a piece of bacon off of his plate with his fingers and put it in his mouth while listening to the action within the kitchen.

---

Molly and Fleur went out to the back garden to begin picking vegetables for supper as the men prepared for their fishing trip. Arthur sent Bill and Charlie to get the boat from the garage and put Fred and George in charge of rounding up all of the rods and tackle.

Ron sat on the front step and waited for the rest of the men to come and get him. He leaned back on the palms of his hands and raised his face to the warm sun. It had been a long time since he had been able to go outside. He hadn't realized how much he'd missed the fresh air and smells of the outdoors, in contrast, it made the Burrow seem stuffy and slightly claustrophobic.

"Ronald, would you come here for a moment?" his mother's voice came from the side of the house. He pushed himself off of the steps and walked in the direction he'd heard her.

He tried to picture the outside of the Burrow as he made his way over to his mother. It was more difficult than walking inside the house. He found himself overly cautious about running into things as he wandered blindly around the house.

"Right here, dear," his mother instructed. He made his way over to where he thought she was standing and held out his hand, inviting her to lead him to where she wanted him.

Her hand was unusually cold as she slipped it into his own. His mother was normally quite warm from what he remembered. She pulled him further around Burrow without a word. He wasn't sure where she was taking him, but went along with her anyway.

He caught the smell of a floral perfume wafting from her clothing as a slight breeze hit his face. He frowned and walked slightly slower than the pace she was leading him. His mother had rarely worn perfume. She always smelled of fresh baking and laundry soap. The only time she wore perfume was to special dos at the Ministry around Christmas time or during Ministry ceremonies. He also noticed that her wedding ring was missing from around her finger.

He pulled his hand away and stopped walking with her. She stopped and turned to look at him.

"What's wrong, dear?" she asked.

He noticed a hint of annoyance in her voice and took a step backwards.

"Ronald, don't play games," she demanded. "Come here."

Ron mouthed that he wanted to speak with his father, but she angrily grabbed his wrist and pulled him forward.

Bellatrix pulled her wand away from her throat and sneered.

"You're not as daft as I thought," Bellatrix muttered, with her own voice now, as she grabbed Ron by the wrist and Apparated away from the Burrow.


	12. Where's Ron?

I am so, so sorry for the delay in updates. I have been so crazy busy lately that I've had no time to do anything. This is my first year full-time teaching and I've started a choir and I've been coaching volleyball and basketball, planned Christmas concerts and family Christmas events, and house-sitting. So, unfortunately the updates ended up neglected for awhile. Now I'm on Christmas vacation, so I have time to update.

This is a short chapter, but I really wanted to give you a chapter for Christmas. No fear, though. Now that I have 24 hours of time to myself for the next week or so, there will be updates. My next update will most definitely be before New Year's Eve, so check back.

Anyway, you didn't really come here to read about my life story, so, let's read about Ron for a bit, shall we? Enjoy!!

---

**~ Chapter 12 ~**

**Where's Ron?**

Ron felt his feet leave the ground. The space around him whipped by and he could feel a rush of air across his face. At one point he couldn't tell which direction was up.

Within seconds, his feet reconnected with solid ground. His body broke into a cold sweat and he breathed heavily as he bent over and gripped his knees in an effort to remain upright.

"Oh, for…" Bellatrix sighed impatiently as she stepped aside and watched Ron vomit on the cobblestone steps they were standing on. "That can't be your first time Apparating."

Ron grimaced and wiped his mouth with his sleeve.

"Come on, then," Bellatrix breathed. She grabbed Ron by his wrist and pulled him into the building they were standing in front of. Ron tried to pull his arm away, but her grip was firm.

Ron wracked his brain to place the woman's voice. He knew he'd heard her voice somewhere before, but he couldn't recall where.

"Oh, my god, Bella," another female voice gasped as they entered the building. Ron heard the door click shut behind them. "What have you done?"

Ron's face blanched as the face of Bellatrix Lestrange flashed through his memory. He took a step back and tore his wrist from her grasp. He stumbled a few feet and landed on his backside next to the door.

Bellatrix rolled her eyes and watched as Ron pulled himself to his feet and fight with the door handle, which she had magically locked behind them once they had come inside.

"Is that one of the Weasley children?" the other woman asked fearfully.

"Calm down, Cissy," Bellatrix smiled. "They took Lucius. It's only fair we get one of theirs."

Ron froze and released the door handle as he realized he was in the Malfoys' house with Draco Malfoy's mum, Narcissa. He turned to face the two of them, keeping his back against the door.

"What have you done to him?" Narcissa asked. She grabbed Ron's chin and examined his eyes. Ron pulled his face away and tightened his lips into a scowl.

"He's done it to himself, really," replied Bellatrix. Ron could hear the smile in her voice. She leaned against Ron and ran her finger through his hair. She smiled as he pulled away. "I put a little curse on him to keep him from speaking of the Dark Lord. Obviously he didn't learn his lesson."

Ron cringed as she spoke the name.

"It's fascinating, really," said Bellatrix seductively. "I've never seen my curse progress like this before."

Ron could feel his body begin to tremble. He closed his eyes and swallowed the lump building in his throat, trying to will the oncoming fit to cease.

"Oops," Ron could hear the smile in Bellatrix's voice as she stepped away and watched his body work against him.

Ron stepped forward, holding out his hand to feel for something to hold on to. Bellatrix pulled him back by his upper arm and chuckled.

"Come now, you're not going anywhere," she sneered.

Ron collapsed onto the floor, unable to hold up his own weight any longer. The back of his head connected sharply with the floor just as his muscles tensed. His back lifted of the floor and his toes and fingers curled in tightly. Narcissa took a step back in horror while her sister grinned and watched as Ron's entire body relaxed and tensed once again. He gritted his teeth and tried to scream, but he was unable to make any sound.

"So much like the Cruciatus, isn't it," said Bella, cheerfully. Narcissa looked from Bella to Ron in utter horror. She'd seen the Cruciatus curse before, but never on someone as young as Ron. The fact that he was the same age as Draco was more than disconcerting to her.

Ron's body relaxed and he panted tiredly. He fought back the tears building along the rims of his eyes. He was not going to give Bellatrix Lestrange the satisfaction of seeing him cry.

"He's just a boy," Narcissa objected softly. "It's not right."

"He's a filthy blood traitor, Cissy," Bellatrix spat. "It doesn't matter how old he is. He's on Potter's side, which means he's the enemy."

"I can't let you torture him in my home, Bella," Narcissa warned. "You can keep him here, lock him up if you must, but I will not have you torture a boy the same age as Draco in front of me."

Bellatrix frowned indignantly and let out an exasperated breath. She nodded and pulled Ron to his feet. Ron stumbled and fell to his knees in front of Narcissa. He cringed as he felt both women pull him to his feet. Narcissa pulled his arm over her shoulders and helped Bellatrix lead him into another room. They stepped away and closed the door behind them, leaving him alone in an unfamiliar room.

---

Molly rushed into the kitchen of the Burrow to find Ron. Arthur and the four remaining Weasley boys – minus Percy – were packing their things into the Muggle boat Arthur had brought home from work.

"Ron, sweetheart," Molly called as she moved through the house. "Let me know where you are, love." She stood in silence and listened for Ron to make some sort of noise that would signal her to where he was.

She listened, but no sound came. No crash of glass against the floor. No knocking on the walls or the floor boards. No footsteps making their way toward her from the upper levels of the house.

Molly tried to keep herself from panicking and rushed through the house in search of her son.

Arthur and the boys strapped everything into the boat and prepared to transport it to one of the nearby lakes where Arthur had heard the fishing would be decent. He excused himself and walked into the Burrow to find out what was keeping Ron and Molly.

As Arthur stepped into the kitchen, he immediately spotted Molly a few feet away, staring at the family's enchanted clock and clutching at her chest. He slowly approached his wife and looked up to see Ron's hand pointing directly at 'Mortal Peril'.

---

Ron was pulled into a large room by Fenrir Greyback. Ron could smell the stench of Greyback's breath as it brushed along his cheek. He cringed and tried to keep up with the pace he at which he was being dragged.

The sound of their shoes against the cold, tile floor echoed throughout the room. An expression of panic covered Ron's face as he realized why he was being forced into the centre of the room.

Ron stood motionless in the spot Greyback had placed him. He could feel his own heart pounding against his chest as a bead of sweat began to trickle along his spine from the back of his neck.

Voldemort approached Ron and crossed his arms as he stood in front of him. He pushed the tip of his wand under Ron's chin and forced Ron's face upward so he could examine his face.

Ron held his breath and clenched his fists, expecting Voldemort to cast the Killing Curse at any moment.

"You've done well, Bellatrix," said Voldemort. His voice was menacing and created a sense of fear within the room. Ron's body began to tremble as Voldemort lowered his wand and stepped back.

"Thank you, my lord," said Bellatrix, sounding quite happy with herself for pleasing Voldemort.

"Pure blood?" Voldemort asked, looking back at Bellatrix. Bellatrix nodded and moved closer to Voldemort.

"Such a waste," Voldemort sighed. "But you can't blame the children. They've been molded by the parents. It's really the parents who should be punished."

Ron quickly shook his head, trying to keep his parents safe from Voldemort's wrath. Voldemort sneered and wrapped his fingers around Ron's neck, pulling him close.

"I should kill you, you know," Voldemort hissed in Ron's ear. "But Bellatrix tells me you're Potter's little sidekick. I do believe I can use this to my advantage." He released Ron and sent him stumbling backwards.

---

Harry shot out of bed, dripping with sweat. Remnants of what Voldemort was thinking lingered in his mind as he realized where he was. He threw the covers from him and jumped out of bed, making much more noise than necessary. Neville sat up and rubbed his eyes sleepily.

"You all right, Harry?" He mumbled.

"I don't know," Harry replied quickly as he rushed out of the boys' dorm room. He raced down the stairs and out of the portrait hole to find Professor Dumbledore.

---

Feel free to review. I enjoy hearing from you! Have a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanza, Happy Holidays… whatever you're celebrating, enjoy!


	13. Incendio

Ron and the Death Eaters stood silently in the overly large parlour area. Ron could feel how close Voldemort was to him. He tried to put on a brave face, but he knew it wasn't working. He repeated a steady mantra within his head to keep him from panicking and making the wrong move. 'What would Harry do? What would Harry do? What would Harry do?"

Voldemort towered menacingly over Ron as Ron trembled and stared at the floor, terrified of what Voldemort was planning for him. Voldemort smile and chuckled menacingly.

"Don't do away with this one right away, Bellatrix," Voldemort stated. "I have very important plans for him."

Bellatrix smiled widely and pulled Ron back into the spare room they had been keeping him in. Ron stumbled to the floor as Bellatrix pushed him forcefully into the room.

"Play your cards right," Bellatrix warned. "And the Dark Lord may show you some mercy in the end." She slammed the door behind her, leaving Ron alone in silence.

Ron struggled to his feet and made his way over to the corner of the room he felt most comfortable before sitting down and pushing his back into the corner. He pulled his knees to his chest and scrunched his eyes closed; willing his mind out of his body, hoping someone might hear him and come to his rescue.

---

"Can we try some sort of locator spell?" Arthur suggested. The entire Weasley family was sitting around the kitchen table along with Kingsley, Moody, Tonks, Lupin, Hermione, and Harry.

"I've tried sending my Patronus," Tonks interjected. "There seems to be some sort of barrier that prevents any messages getting to Ron.

Everyone sat silently, listening to the local wizarding news playing through the wireless in the sitting room. Molly had pulled her chair over to the old clock and stared longingly at the hand with Ron's picture, which remained at 'Mortal Peril'. Her worst fear was that the hand would fall from its hinge and land within the pile of clock hands belonging to late members of the Weasley/Prewett family.

Ron's clock hand twitched ever so slightly, making Molly leap from her seat and clutch at the breast of her shirt. She held her breath and watched as the hand stopped twitching and continued to inform everyone that Ron was still in trouble.

Arthur pulled his chair next to Molly and wrapped his arm around her.

"Where is he?" Molly whimpered.

"I don't know,' Arthur replied softly.

They were interrupted suddenly as Dumbledore and Harry appeared within the fireplace. The Aurors leapt from their chairs with their wands drawn, ready to defend everyone in the Burrow. Moody quickly motioned for everyone to lower their wands as he realized who the intruders were.

"Albus? What are you doing here?" Remus gasped.

Dumbledore stepped out of fireplace and dusted off his robes. He smiled sadly as he realized that Harry's vision was correct.

"I assume you've discovered that Ron has gone missing?" Dumbledore asked politely. He watched as a few heads nodded and continued. "Mr. Potter has some information as to where Ron could be."

Harry looked over at Molly and Arthur and felt his breath catch in his throat. The last thing he wanted to do was break the news to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley that Voldemort had their youngest son.

"I… uh…" Harry began. He broke into a cold sweat and trembled slightly. "Ron is…"

Dumbledore smiled sympathetically and placed his hand on Harry's shoulder. "I'm afraid Mr. Potter has seen Ron with Voldemort."

Molly's face fell and she gripped Arthur's hand tightly. When Ron had disappeared, her worst fear was that he had been taken by Death Eaters. Knowing he was in the hands of Voldemort was far worse than she'd feared.

The shocked silence within the room was interrupted by a news bulletin over the wireless.

"We're sorry to interrupt your regular programming. We've just received word that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and a group of his Death Eaters have invaded Diagon Alley."

---

Ron stood motionlessly in the centre of Diagon Alley. He watched silently as witches and wizards began screaming and running away. The alley was filled with the pops of people Apparating out of the street and the scattered footsteps against the pavement.

Ron looked up at Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. The usually busy and energetic shop was now empty. He wasn't sure where his brothers were. They were probably still at the Burrow with his mom and dad.

He lifted his wand and pointed it up at the mechanical magician and rabbit above the front entrance. He didn't want to do it. He wanted to put his wand away and go home. It was such a strange sensation; the Imperious curse. He knew what he was doing, but it felt as though his body was on auto-pilot.

Voldemort laughed from behind him. He could feel Voldemort put his hands on each of his shoulders and breathe against the side of his face.

"Do it!" he whispered. "Destroy your brothers' cheap little joke shop."

Without a second thought, Ron's mouth opened and the word escaped from his vocal chords.

"Incendio."

---

"Can I get you anything, Mrs. Weasley?" Hermione asked softly. She sat on the sofa next to Molly and looked at her timidly.

"Thank you, Hermione," Molly sniffed sadly. "I'm fine, dear."

Hermione nodded and slowly walked into the kitchen where Harry and the twins were sitting around the table.

"How's she doing?" Fred asked as he absently played with the pepper shaker.

"Fine, I suppose," Hermione sighed as she sat down. "All things considering." Fred and George nodded in unison. Harry ran his hands through his hair and sighed loudly. Molly had been unusually quiet and somber ever since Harry had broken the news to her.

"Did you send an owl to Verity?" Hermione asked to break the awkward silence.

"Yeah," replied George.

"She's going to hide out for awhile until the war is over," replied Fred.

"Who knows when that's going to happen," George sighed.

"We'll salvage what we can from the shop in the next few days and do our sales by owl," Fred continued in an odd monotone.

They all sat in silence, not knowing how to continue the conversation.

A large, brown owl made everyone jump as it tapped on the kitchen window. Hermione pushed away from the table and opened the window. She pulled the Daily Prophet away from the owl and placed it on the table before paying the owl.

Harry unrolled the newspaper and looked over the front page. His jaw dropped suddenly and he let the paper fall on to the table. Hermione frowned and looked over Harry's shoulder at the Daily Prophet.

"Oh my god," she gasped as she stared down at the picture of Voldemort in Diagon Alley along with his Death Eaters and one wizard with his wand pointed toward an inferno that was once Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. "That's Ron!"

***

Happy New Year everybody! I meant to have this up New Year's Eve, but I had serious writer's block. Hopefully you don't mind me making you wait until New Year's Day. Enjoy and I will try to have at least one more chapter up before I go back to work (Jan. 6). Remember to review and let me know what you thought of this chapter.


	14. Imperio

Ron sat with his back against the wall and his knees tucked up to his chest. Following the attack on Diagon Alley, Voldemort and the Death Eaters had Apparated with Ron back to the Malfoys' house. The moment he was released from the Imperious Curse, Ron's vision faded and he was once again rendered unable to speak.

He remained on the floor where they had left him; Voldemort's last words rang through his mind, incessantly filling him with guilt: "I really should thank you, Mr. Weasley. With you here, Harry Potter is going to come right to me. I really should count myself lucky."

Narcissa slowly pushed the door of the bedroom open and walked inside. The sound didn't startle Ron at all. He remained still, not bothering to look in the direction of the room's new occupant.

Narcissa knelt close to Ron and removed the uneaten dish of food she had set by him earlier. In its place, she provided Ron with a plate of left-overs from the meal she, Bellatrix, and a few of the Death Eaters had eaten at dinner.

She had tried to remain cold and uncaring with Ron, but there was something about him that brought out her desire to nurture, just as she did with Draco.

"You haven't been eating," she stated stiffly. "You really should eat. You don't know when your next meal will be. In your state you should be trying to keep your strength up."

Ron absently chewed at the corner of his thumbnail and focused his eyes where he figured his feet were.

"It's not been poisoned," Narcissa continued. She watched Ron bite at his nail and shook her head.

"That's such a filthy habit," she muttered as she pulled Ron's hand away from his mouth. This made Ron jump. He hadn't expected Draco's mother to touch him or even acknowledge his presence while he had been locked away in her house. It was even more unexpected that she seemed to care about him. She sounded very much like his own mother.

Narcissa stood up and turned to leave the room, flustered by her own actions. What would Lucius think if he saw her caring for the Weasley boy? He and Arthur Weasley had always butted heads at the Ministry.

"Go on and eat your dinner, Draco," she muttered quickly. As she stepped out of the room and closed the door behind her, she realized what she had just said.

Ron sat, stunned, and listened to the clicks of Mrs. Malfoy's heels against the tile floor outside the room. He waited until they disappeared, before feeling around for the plate of food and slowly grazing on the roast chicken and dill potatoes Narcissa had left for him.

---

Over the next few days, Ron did anything he could to pass the time. He'd paced the room, played a few games of chess in his head, thrown various objects at the window in hopes that it would break; he'd even tried counting the tiles on the floor for a good half hour.

He received the occasional visits from Narcissa when she brought him food and water, but since her last visit, she rarely said a word to him. He'd finally given in and started to eat the entire plate of food when she brought it to him. He hoped that if she kept her happy, maybe she'd speak to him again. He was beginning to feel really lonely within the room and just wanted to hear someone speak for awhile.

Over time, Ron could feel that something was happening to him. His body had begun to tremble slightly and he'd broken into a cold sweat. As the days wore on, he found he was feeling weaker and weaker. He wasn't sure if it was because Narcissa had been putting something in his food or if Bellatrix's curse had continued to progress.

As the bedroom door opened, Ron politely pushed his empty plate toward the approaching footsteps. Without warning, he was pulled forcefully from the floor by his arm and pulled toward the door. Ron could tell just by the smell, that it was Grayback that was sent to retrieve him.

As soon as they'd reached the large room where Voldemort was waiting, Grayback pushed Ron to the floor and grinned evilly. Ron scrambled to his feet and stood in place, awaiting whatever Voldemort was going to dish out.

"I'm very disappointed in you, Mr. Weasley," Voldemort sighed dramatically. "I see you're not as important to Mr. Potter as I had thought." Ron glared angrily in Voldemort's direction and clenched his fists against his sides. Voldemort walked around Ron menacingly, like a wild animal stalking its prey.

"I suppose if Mr. Potter won't come to us, we must go to him," Voldemort hissed from behind Ron. Ron shook his head and clenched his teeth.

"Give me your arm, boy," Voldemort demanded. Ron remained still, keeping his arms tightly pressed against his side. Maybe if he was lucky, Voldemort would kill him before they could get to Harry.

"I said give me your arm," Voldemort threatened, pausing between each word for emphasis. When Ron failed to comply, Voldemort pulled his wand from his cloak and pointed it at Ron. "Imperio!"

Ron's eyes darkened and his body relaxed. Against his will, he lifted his left arm and presented it to Voldemort.

Voldemort smiled and grabbed Ron by the wrist. "That's a good boy," he sneered as he pressed the tip of his wand against his forearm. Without a word, Voldemort produced the Dark Mark within Ron's skin.

Ron screamed inside as he stared at the Dark Mark with disbelief. His arm burned and prickled as the fresh brand settled into his skin. Voldemort pulled Ron's sleeve over the mark and smiled maliciously.

"Shall we?" he asked the sneering Death Eaters surrounding Ron.

---

Molly pushed her hands into the hot, soapy water she had conjured into the sink and began scraping at the dirty lunch dishes with a cloth. She couldn't remember the last time she'd washed the dishes by hand. She was so desperate to rid her mind of what Voldemort could be doing to her son that she'd begun doing the housework by hand. She'd already dusted, swept, cooked lunch, and changed the linens on all of the beds in the house.

Arthur, George, Fred, Ginny, and Hermione were in the sitting room, listening to the wireless in hopes that someone would report seeing Ron and Voldemort. Bill, Charlie, and Harry were unable to sit around waiting to hear where Voldemort might be and had instead gone looking for him, against Molly and Arthur's wishes. Percy, being more the type that goes off and hides in stressful situations had gone back to the Ministry to work.

Molly set the clean dish in the drying rack and dried her hands. She looked out the kitchen window and frowned. She had the strange sensation that something was wrong. She looked over at the family clock and watched as all of the hands moved from 'Home' to 'Mortal Peril'.

Just as she was about to call for Arthur, she heard the familiar pop of Apparition in the yard. As she glanced out the window again, she immediately forgot about the hands on the clock.

"Arthur, come quick!" Molly cried as she pushed the kitchen door open and ran outside. Everyone in the sitting room jumped from the sofas and ran to the kitchen to see what had happened.

Ron ran toward his mother and wrapped his arms tightly around her. Molly returned the embrace and sobbed heavily.

"Mom," Ron whimpered against Molly's shoulder. She gripped the back of his shirt tightly and pulled him closer, not wanting to let him go again.

"Ron?" Arthur managed to gasp as he ran outside toward them. He joined their tight embrace, followed by Hermione, Ginny, and the twins.

"Let's get you inside, dear," Molly said finally, breaking the embrace and taking Ron by the arm. "Are you hungry? Can I get you anything; anything at all?"

"No, mom, I'm fine, really," Ron replied.

"Arthur, send a Patronus to the boys and let them know that Ron is home safe," Molly instructed as she pulled Ron toward the Burrow. "Let's get you cleaned up and fed."

---

Ron pulled a clean jumper over his head and sat on the edge of his bed. His family had finally given him a minute to himself to shower and get cleaned up. He sat completely still and listened to the sounds outside. There was the pop of an Apparition, followed by two more.

"Ron?" Molly called, sounding panicked.

"I'm still here," Ron called back as he made his way down the stairs.

Hermione and Ginny watched as Ron walked through the kitchen without a word and disappeared outside.

"Is that Harry, Charlie, and Bill?" Ginny asked. Hermione shrugged and looked back at the Weasley's clock to see if Bill and Charlie's hands were pointing at 'Home'. She frowned and sat up when she saw all of the hands pointed at 'Mortal Peril'.

"Something's not right," Hermione mumbled as she got up to follow Ron.

Charlie laughed and patted Harry on the back as he struggled not to puke.

"You get used to it after awhile," Bill laughed.

"Thanks," Harry muttered. He swallowed hard and looked up at the Burrow just in time to see Ron walking toward them. "Ron!" he exclaimed happily.

As Ron approached the three of them, he grabbed his wand from his back pocket at pointed it toward Harry.

"Avada Kedavra!"

---

I don't know when I'll be able to update next. Hopefully in a few weeks. Enjoy this chapter for now and please review to let me know what you think!


	15. Polyjuice and Veritaserum

**~ Chapter 15 ~**

**Polyjuice and Veritaserum**

He didn't want to do it. He tried everything he could to stop himself. He began screaming in his own head the moment he had gripped his wand between his fingers. Harry didn't even have a chance to reach for his own wand; and why would he? Why would he even think for a second that his best friend would cast the Killing Curse on him?

The second the words passed his lips, he closed his eyes and dropped his head. He'd done what Voldemort had wanted him to do. His task was done; he was released from the Imperious Curse.

Just as his knees were beginning to give out, Ron heard the familiar pop of an Apparition, followed by another and the feeling accompanied with Apparating from one place to the next. Without looking, he knew it was Bellatrix that had Apparated with him away from the Burrow. He would know that perfume anywhere.

---

"Harry!" Hermione screamed. As she ran from the Burrow toward him, she found herself noticing how strange it was that Harry's body hadn't hit the ground yet. He was still standing erect between Bill and Charlie. It was also strange to see him take a step back and clutch his chest to feel his own heart beat.

"What the hell?" Harry gasped suddenly. "How am I still alive?"

"Bloody hell," Charlie managed to gasp as the realization that Harry was still alive hit him.

"He missed," Bill laughed with disbelief. "Holy shit! He missed!"

Harry looked behind him and stared at the spot where the curse had actually struck. The corn stalks had turned black and wilted and were still smoking slightly.

Hermione jumped onto Harry, wrapping her arms around him tight enough to make breathing difficult. Harry stumbled backwards and returned Hermione's hug with much less force.

"I thought you were dead!" Hermione gasped with disbelief. "I can't believe you're not dead!"

"You can't?!" Harry exclaimed.

"What the hell's happened to Ron?" Fred asked as he and George walked out of the Burrow.

"Who was that chick that took him?" George asked.

"Bellatrix LeStrange," Hermione growled angrily.

"He had to have been under the Imperious Curse," Charlie stated. "Ron would never cast the Killing Curse."

"Then how did he miss?" Hermione asked. "If he was under the Imperious Curse, he shouldn't have been able to miss."

---

"How did he miss?!" Voldemort snapped furiously. "Harry Potter should be dead!"

Ron was on his knees on the cold, tile floor. After the attack on Harry, his legs refused to hold him up any longer. He was trying to get the information to sink into his head. He'd cast the Killing Curse, but he had somehow missed Harry. Harry was still alive! He hadn't killed him!

"Crucio!" Voldemort shouted angrily, pointing his wand at Ron. The curse hit Ron hard enough to send him flying a few feet from where he'd been kneeling. Every muscle in his body felt as if it was on fire. Ron's entire body tensed and convulsed under Voldemort's power. He could feel the sheer anger and hate with each wave the curse sent into his body.

After watching Ron thrash and silently scream on the floor for a few minutes, Voldemort lifted the curse and grit his teeth. The Cruciatus Curse wasn't as satisfying without the screams of the victim. He stared down at the Ron as he curled himself into the foetal position and awaited another attack.

It was only when Voldemort stepped behind him that he'd noticed he was shaking, soaked with sweat, and having a hard time catching his breath. He could hear Voldemort exhale deeply and he could feel him staring at him. Ron swallowed hard and closed his eyes tightly, not sure what was about to happen to him.

"What is this?" Voldemort snapped.

The sound of high heels made their way over to Voldemort's side and the familiar scent of Bellatrix's perfume filled Ron's nasal passages.

"It's the curse, my Lord," Bellatrix replied. "It was meant to take on the characteristics of the three Unforgivable Curses as well as incapacitate the victim. The last Unforgivable Curse is beginning to take place."

Ron didn't need to see Voldemort to know he was smiling. He shuddered as Voldemort knelt down so that he was breathing along the back of Ron's neck.

"Well, isn't this a pleasant surprise," Voldemort hissed into Ron's ear. "I was going to kill you right here in front of everyone as punishment for not completing your task, but I think this would be a better lesson for you. Don't you agree?"

Voldemort curled his long, skeletal fingers into Ron's hair and pulled his head back forcefully. Ron cringed and nodded quickly. Voldemort smiled and released his grip on Ron.

"Goyle! Take the boy to the Shrieking Shack," Voldemort instructed. "That way someone will find him… eventually." He stood up and stared down at Ron "Hogwarts next trip to Hogsmeade isn't for another few weeks," he hissed menacingly. "By then, you should be dead."

Voldemort nodded at Goyle and took a step back. Goyle grabbed Ron's upper arm and the two of them disappeared from the room. Voldemort crossed his arms and sighed before leaving the room without a word. Narcissa quietly went to the guest room to clean up and remove the spells Bellatrix had cast to keep Ron in.

---

Hermione unpacked her overnight bag and folded everything neatly into the drawers of her dresser. She'd left the Weasley's earlier that morning after deciding her time would be better spent at Hogwarts. She didn't tell Harry, or anyone else for that matter, of her plans. She had convinced the Weasley's and Harry that she had to go back to Hogwarts to prepare for her N.E.W.T.s. No one questioned her.

She pulled a small shoebox out from under her bed and removed the protection spell she'd placed on it. She opened the box and removed a small vial of Polyjuice Potion. She had saved a few vials after second year in case of the occasion arose in which they would need it again.

She placed the few hairs she'd collected into the Polyjuice Potion and watched the potion react. She shoved the vial into the pocket of her robe, as well as another vial, before pushing the shoebox back under her bed. Without a word, she left the Gryffindor Common Room and headed for the dungeons.

---

Draco slicked his hair back with both hands and sat on one of the green sofas in the Slytherin Common Room. He rested both feet on the table in front of the sofa and leaned back casually with both hands behind his back. With Harry away from Hogwarts, Draco was able to relax. Ever since he'd let Harry know that his aunt was responsible for Ron's condition, he'd had to duck around corners and avoid Harry.

Except for what Bellatrix had told him back in Hogsmeade, Draco really didn't know anything more about Ron. He really didn't want to know anything else either. Knowing his mother, she wouldn't want him to know if anything was going on at home either. She hated that Voldemort had singled Draco out and given him the task he was to perform before the end of the term. She always worried about his safety.

Draco had heard that Ron had disappeared from his family home and assumed his aunt was responsible. For all he knew, his aunt may have killed Ron and disposed of the body.

Blaise Zabini entered the Common Room and smirked at Draco. He sat across from Draco and passed him a mug of butter beer. Draco raised one eyebrow and smiled evilly.

"Where'd you get these?" Draco asked, motioning toward the two mugs of butter beer.

"From some of the house elves," replied Blaise. "They just needed a little… encouragement." He lifted his glass and grinned maliciously. Draco nodded his approval and tipped the contents of the mug over his lips.

Blaise took a swig of the butter beer and set it back on the table. He sat back and kept his eye on Draco. Draco set his own glass down and looked at Blaise questioningly.

"What?" he asked.

"What do you know about Ron Weasley?" Blaise asked. Draco frowned and sat up straight.

"My aunt cursed him," Draco replied, surprised at his own willingness to bluntly answer the question. "The curse takes on the characteristics of each of the Unforgivable Curses and makes the victim defenseless. Eventually he's going to die."

Blaise watched as Draco squirmed in his seat and nodded. "Where is he now?" Blaise asked.

"At home, as far as I know," Draco replied honestly.

"Do you want to try answering that one again?" Blaise threatened.

"I honestly don't know," Draco panicked. "No one's told me anything!" Draco tried to stand up and walk away, but Blaise stood up quickly and wrapped his hand around Draco's neck.

"Where has Voldemort taken Ron?!" Blaise spat angrily. "How do you remove the curse?"

"I don't know!" Draco whimpered. "I don't know anything more!" Blaise clenched his jaw and pushed Draco back onto the sofa.

"Consider yourself lucky, Malfoy," Blaise hissed. "If I find out you've known where Ron is and he dies, I'll kill you!" Draco frowned and looked at the butter beer.

"Veritaserum?!" Draco gasped with disbelief. Blaise nodded and made his way toward the entrance of the Slytherin Common Room. "Is that you, Potter?" Draco spat angrily.

Blaise looked back and shook his head. "Potter's not the only one you need to watch out for," he threatened. He stepped out of the Common Room and made his way upstairs to the girls' bathroom just as his hair began to grow into long, unruly curls.

---

Charlie pushed purposefully through his parents' cornfield. When he was far enough that no one could see or hear him, he removed his wand from his back pocket and thrust it out in front of him, sending an electric current into the ground with a loud crack. He grabbed a stalk of corn and pulled it from the dirt and threw it a few feet in front of him. He growled and stared angrily up at the sky.

There was no saying what was going to happen to Ron. Charlie assumed that Voldemort would be angry once he'd discovered Harry was still alive. Ron was sure to suffer at the hand of Voldemort.

He didn't know what to do. He could look for Ron, but he had no idea where to look. He couldn't be tracked and there were no clues as to where he'd been taken. Charlie sighed and dropped his hands to his sides.

He watched as a small, black owl flew above him and headed toward the Burrow. Charlie turned and slowly began making his way back to the Burrow to help his mother prepare dinner.

Upon hearing his mother shout his name, Charlie took off running through the cornfields. He stopped suddenly as he pushed through the last of the corn to see his mother grasping at a letter the owl had delivered.

"Mom?" Charlie asked as he made his way over to her side. "Mom, what is it?"

Molly put her hand over her mouth and handed Charlie the letter as Arthur stood by her side and wrapped his arm around her.

Charlie looked down at the small piece of paper and read the two words written in a very neat script.

"Shrieking Shack"

---

Charlie took the stairs of the Shrieking Shack three at a time. His eyes hadn't yet adjusted to the lack of light when he'd reached the top floor of the shack. A few streams of light came through the cracks in the siding of the room and through the dusty windows; just enough for Charlie to see Ron lying motionlessly on the bed.

Charlie ran to Ron's side and gently patted the side of Ron's face. Ron remained unconscious, his shallow breathing the only sign that Ron was still alive.

"Wake up, Ron," Charlie whispered, shaking Ron slightly. He shook his head and quickly removed the restraints holding Ron in place. He pulled Ron into his arms and began carrying him down the stairs toward the underground passage that would lead them to the Whomping Willow. He could feel Ron's body trembling uncontrollably against him and as Ron's head fell against his shoulder, he could feel the heat radiating from Ron's clammy skin.

"Let's get you home, Charlie grunted.

---

"Arthur!" Molly cried from the kitchen. "Arthur, come here! Quickly!"

Arthur leapt from the sofa and raced to the kitchen to find Molly staring at the family clock.

"What is it, love?" Arthur asked breathlessly. He looked up at the clock to find both Charlie's and Ron's hands moving toward 'Home'.

They both jumped as Charlie burst into the kitchen with Ron. Molly was the first to run to Charlie's side to see Ron.

"Let's get him to the sofa," Molly instructed. "Hurry."

Charlie carried Ron into the sitting room and gently placed him on the sofa. Ron's arm slipped off the side of the sofa and dangled uncomfortably. Molly quickly grabbed a blanket and wrapped Ron with it. She gasped as she grabbed hold of Ron's arm to make him more comfortable. She cupped her free hand over her mouth and fought back the tears that were building along the bottom of her eyes.

"Is that?" Charlie gasped, looking at Ron's arm.

"The Dark Mark," Arthur breathed in disbelief. He took Ron's wrist and pulled it close enough to examine. He shook his head angrily and placed Ron's arm over Ron's chest.

"Arthur, he didn't…" Molly began.

Arthur shook his head. "Not willingly. Not our son," Arthur shouted. "We'll get rid of it."

"I'm sure Bill will be able to fix it, Mom," Charlie encouraged. "The Dark Mark can be removed if it wasn't taken willingly." Molly nodded and sat on the sofa next to Ron. She placed her hand on his forehead and grimaced.

"He's burning up," she said sadly. She summoned a bowl of water and a cloth with her wand and gently placed the damp cloth on Ron's forehead causing Ron to shiver and pull away.

Arthur and Charlie watched as Molly gently dabbed the cloth along Ron's face and neck.

"You're all right now, darling," Molly whispered. "Rest and get better now. You're home."

---

Ron lay in his own bed, barely breathing. Charlie had carried him up to his room once Molly had gotten him cleaned up and into clean clothes. Molly had stayed the night in Ron's room, doing everything she could to keep Ron comfortable. Healers had been summoned, but could do nothing to remove the curse.

Molly had pulled a chair up to Ron's bedside and had fallen asleep. She was sitting in the chair, her body draped over the side of Ron's bed. Arthur had found her there and considered taking her to bed, but he felt it best to let her stay with Ron for awhile.

Harry had also fallen asleep in Ron's room. He was leaning back against the wall beside Ron's bed with his arms folded over his chest. He had stayed with Ron and Molly, sitting silently, listening to the sound of Ron's labored breathing, which had later become so quiet it was hard to tell if he was breathing at all.

Hermione ascended the long staircase and stopped at Ron's bedroom door. She leaned against the door frame and stared longingly at Ron. She slowly entered the room and took a seat next to Harry on the floor.

Harry grunted and opened his eyes, taking a moment to realize where he was and how he'd gotten there.

"I thought you'd gone back to school," Harry mumbled sleepily. He looked over at Ron to make sure he was still there, then, stretched and looked at Hermione.

"I just had a few things to do," Hermione replied softly. She snuggled close to Harry and rested her head on his shoulder. "I was hoping I could bully some answers out of Malfoy."

Harry sat up and looked at Hermione questioningly.

"He doesn't know anything," Hermione breathed regretfully. "He knew about the curse, but he didn't even know that Ron had gone missing. He doesn't know how to remove the curse either."

Harry frowned and adjusted his glasses. "How did you find this out?" he asked quietly.

"Polyjuice Potion and Veritaserum," Hermione replied. Harry lifted one eyebrow and smiled down at Hermione. They both froze as Ron release a short sigh and fell silent. They both stared at Ron and waited for Ron to inhale.

Ron had stopped breathing.

---

A/N: Thank you dumdoc for pointing out my lack of info with Draco. I hope this chapter cleared up all of your questions. I hope this chapter tides you over for awhile (I didn't make you wait too long this time). More to come.

Thanks to all who have left reviews. I really appreciate them! Let me know what you thought about this chapter! ^-^


	16. Road to Recovery

A chapter pour vous. Enjoy!!

---

**~ Chapter 16 ~**

**Road to Recovery**

Hermione and Harry scrambled to their feet and over to Ron's bedside. Hermione gently took Ron's chin in her hand and tilted his head back. She knelt over him and listened for the steady inhalation and exhalation of Ron's breath.

She took a step back, looked over at Harry, and shook her head. Harry wrapped his fingers over Ron's wrist and felt the faintly beating pulse against his fingertips.

Molly sat up and looked questioningly at Harry and Hermione. She pushed her chair back and stood up.

"What's wrong?" Molly asked, her face paling with worry.

"He's stopped breathing," Harry replied. He froze as Hermione pushed Ron onto his back and began pumping her hands against his chest. She gripped Ron's chin and pushed her lips against his, desperately trying to get him to breathe.

"Hermione?" Molly gasped, not understanding what Hermione was doing.

"It's all right, Mrs. Weasley," Harry said calmly, placing a comforting hand on her arm. "That's the Muggle way to get someone breathing again." Molly furrowed her brows and watched her, not knowing what Hermione thought she was doing.

Ron inhaled sharply and coughed until his throat was clear. Hermione collapsed against his chest and clutched his shirt tightly.

"Thank God," she whimpered.

Ron remained sleeping as Harry and Hermione left the room to give Molly time alone with her son. Without a word, Harry grabbed Hermione's hand and pulled her toward Fred and George's old bedroom.

Bill was in bed with Fleur, reading a copy of the Daily Prophet while she filed her nails.

"Hey, you two," Bill greeted. "What's going on?"

"We need your help," Harry replied. "Or Ron may not make it through the night."

---

"I'm really sorry. I've never experienced anything like the curse you've described, Hermione." Hermione nodded sadly and took the glass from Bill. "I've sent an owl out to a few of my mates. I'm hoping they can help us out."

They all jumped as a large, gray owl landed on the windowsill and tapped at the glass. Harry opened the window and took the letter from the owl. It was addressed to the Weasleys, with no return address. He handed it to Bill, assuming it was a reply from one of his mates.

Bill read through the letter more than once to let its contents sink in. After a few minutes he smiled and set the letter on Ron's bedside table.

"All right, Ronnie," Bill announced. "Let's make you better."

Within the hour, Bill had a potion brewing in the kitchen. Molly and Arthur had sent out a number of Patronuses to each of their children asking them to come home for Ron in case the potion didn't work.

Bill lifted his cauldron off of the kitchen stove and set it on the cupboard to cool. He grabbed a ladle and poured some of the contents from the cauldron into a glass. He looked over at Harry and Hermione, who were both sitting at the kitchen table, and shrugged.

"I don't know if this will work, but it's worth a try," Bill explained softly.

Hermione lifted the glass to her face and grimaced at the smell of the potion Bill had brewed. Bill chuckled and led the two of them up to Ron's room.

"I'm sure it tastes better than it smells," Bill humoured.

Molly was still sitting with Ron when the trio reached the bedroom. She was holding Ron's hand between both of hers and was staring at the steady rise and fall of Ron's chest.

"Any change?" Bill asked, placing his hand on his mother's shoulder. She shook her head sadly, never taking her eyes away from Ron.

"We're hoping this will help," Hermione said softly. She approached Ron's bedside and sat next to him as Bill sat down and pulled Ron up into a sitting position. Hermione tilted the glass over Ron's lips and slowly poured the potion into his mouth, waiting occasionally to let him to swallow.

"Please work," Harry whispered under his breath.

They all sat quietly, waiting for any change.

---

Molly, Harry, and Hermione stayed with Ron while everyone else gathered in the kitchen to prepare dinner for the family. As Molly left the room to check on her family downstairs, Hermione looked over the letter for the umpteenth time and frowned.

"Didn't Bill send out owls to a bunch of men?" Hermione asked suspiciously.

Harry nodded and pulled a chair over to Ron's bedside. "Yeah, why?" he asked.

"Whoever wrote this letter has very feminine penmanship," Hermione replied. "And it wasn't even addressed to Bill. It's not even a reply really."

Harry took the letter from Hermione and sat down. He read the letter over and nodded.

"It's come from someone that knows Ron is cursed, but I really don't think this came from one of Bill's mates," Hermione stated.

"You don't think Bellatrix would send this after all she's put him through?" Harry asked.

Hermione shook her head. "Highly doubtful," she replied. "I don't think she would really care if Ron died. I'm sure she would prefer it, actually."

"Suppose the potion we just gave Ron wasn't to make him better," Harry whispered worriedly. He looked over at Ron to make sure he was still breathing.

Hermione shook her head to disagree. She had read over the ingredients and knew the potion wouldn't be lethal. She stopped suddenly and, without a word, ran out of the bedroom.

Molly stepped into the room to check on her son and looked over at Harry questioningly. Harry shrugged and leaned back against the wall next to Ron's bed.

"I knew it!" shouted Hermione from Ginny's bedroom. "I knew I've seen this penmanship somewhere before!" She rushed back into the room and thrust a worn piece of parchment into Harry's face.

"It says 'Shrieking Shack'," Harry stated.

"Well spotted," Hermione replied sarcastically. "Look at the two notes together." Harry held both pieces of parchment together and examined the writing on each.

"It's the same penmanship on each of them," Hermione continued. "Whoever sent the antidote for the curse also sent the location where Ron had been left."

"But who?" Harry asked, looking back at the pieces of parchment.

---

The sun outside the Burrow peeked out from behind the surrounding hills, revealing the countryside that had been surrounded by the darkness of the night. The inhabitants of the Burrow were silently sleeping, apart from the occasional snore and rustling of blankets.

Molly had finally left Ron's side and spent the night with Arthur in their bedroom. With Ron on the mend, she finally allowed herself to go about her normal routines. Harry remained sitting on the floor, propped uncomfortably against the wall with Hermione's head resting on his lap. The two of them had fallen asleep listening to the rhythmic pattern of Ron's breathing.

Ron rolled onto his side and inhaled deeply. He slowly opened his eyes and tried to figure out how he had ended up back in his own bed. He knew it was his bed. He could tell by the texture of the blankets, the smell of the room, and the occasional rustling of ghoul above his room.

He listened to the twin breaths of two other people in the room. He wasn't sure who it was, but tried his best not to wake them as he pushed himself out of bed. He cringed as his feet touched the cold, wooden floor boards.

Gingerly running his hands along his arm, he sighed as he felt the small bumps from the Dark Mark. He held his arm against his stomach, concealing the inked skin from view and quietly grabbed a jumper from its drawer. He pulled it over his head and left the room, trying to keep anyone from waking.

He made his way down to the kitchen without a sound. He was careful to avoid the steps and boards that he knew would creak with even the smallest amount of pressure. He could feel his stomach tighten and growl angrily as it protested to the lack of food intake over the last few days.

Opening the refrigerator, Ron felt around for something familiar; anything that he could identify by touching. He ended up retrieving a bowl of baked beans and an apple before sitting at the table to eat.

As he finished off the cold beans and bit into the apple, he could hear the back door creak open slowly and someone walk into the room. He grabbed the dirty bowl from the table and carefully walked over to the sink. He placed the bowl in the sink and headed toward the staircase with his apple in hand.

"Ron?!" someone gasped from behind him. Ron stopped for a second, not sure whether he should stop to speak with Charlie or run back to his room. Bellatrix had tricked him before by impersonating one of his family members. He wasn't going to fall for it again. He quickly walked toward the sitting room, trying to reach the staircase before Charlie could get to him.

"Ron, wait!" Charlie whispered loudly, not wanting to wake anyone else in the house. He kicked off his shoes and ran after Ron. Ron tried to quicken his pace, but Charlie had him by the arm before he could even get through the door.

He tore himself away from Charlie's grip and fell to the floor; his apple rolled across the wooden floorboards and stopped when it hit the leg of the sofa.

Charlie raised his hands and backed away, not wanting to scare Ron anymore than he already had.

"It's all right, Squirt," Charlie said calmly. "I didn't mean to scare you. Are you ok?"

Ron pushed himself off of the floor and brushed his hands on his pants before glaring in Charlie's direction.

"I'm really sorry, Ron," Charlie whispered. "Come, sit back down. Let's get you something to eat."

Ron stood in one place and considered Charlie's offer. He was still hungry, but didn't want to take any chances. After thinking for a moment, Ron pointed to his hand, then to Charlie. Charlie frowned and tried to get Ron to explain better. Ron sighed and held both of his hands out, palms down, and motioned for Charlie to do the same.

Charlie looked at his baby brother, then at his own hands. As he looked at the scars across the top of his right hand he nodded in understanding and chuckled as he gave Ron his hand. Ron traced his fingers over the indentations of Charlie's scars; scars he'd gotten from work in Romania after wrestling a young dragon. Ron dropped his hands and dropped his head sheepishly.

"Didn't think it was really me, did you?" Charlie snickered. Ron shook his head and continued to keep his head down. Without warning, he leapt at Charlie and wrapped his arms around him. Charlie smiled and held Ron tightly, returning the embrace.

"Come on, Squirt," Charlie whispered, still holding his baby brother. "Let's try to fatten you up a little." He led Ron over to the table and rummaged through the refrigerator for something substantial for Ron to eat.

Ron listened as Charlie moved around the kitchen. He could hear the cracks and sizzle of egg in a frying pan and could faintly smell bread heating within the toaster. Within moments, Charlie was setting a plate on the table in front of Ron. Ron immediately grabbed the fork Charlie placed in his hand and tucked into the scrambled eggs.

Charlie sat across from him and smiled as his little brother began eating just as he'd used to. Ron shoveled the food back without a pause until there was nothing left. Charlie laughed softly as Ron felt around his plate for any leftover food.

"Do you want me to make some more?" Charlie asked. Ron shook his head and carried his plate over to the kitchen sink.

Charlie stood up and began making his way over to the sitting room. He held the door open and called Ron to follow. Ron bit his lower lip and reluctantly followed Charlie. The two of them sat on the sofa and sat silently for a moment before Ron turned to look at Charlie and reached over to touch him to get his attention.

"What is it, squirt?" Charlie asked with a grin. He watched Ron's lips carefully, trying to decipher what he was asking.

"I found you in the Shrieking Shack," Charlie replied. "One of Bill's mates sent a potion recipe to remove the curse you've been under." Ron nodded with a frown before asking another question.

"I don't know," Charlie replied. "It might take awhile before all of this goes away. We'll ask Bill once he gets up. He should know." The two of them sat in silence as Ron pulled his knees up to his chest and pulled at the bottoms of his pant legs.

"What did they…" Charlie began. "Did they hurt you?" Ron sat motionlessly, considering Charlie's question. Not wanting to discuss the last few weeks with his brother, he shook his head, denying he'd been abused by Voldemort.

Charlie shook his head regretfully. He knew Ron well enough to know that he was lying, but he didn't want to push it.

Ron sat for a moment, then stood up and made his way upstairs. Charlie sighed and rested his head in his hands, feeling defeated.

---

Hermione woke with her head on Harry's lap. She quickly sat up and checked to make sure he hadn't noticed that she'd used him as a pillow. As she stretched and ran her hands through her tangled hair, her eyes moved toward Ron's empty bed. Her breath immediately caught in her throat and she sprung to her feet, waking Harry in the process.

Harry grunted and adjusted his glasses. He stood up and stretched out his back, which was cramped from the position he'd slept in.

"He's gone," Hermione gasped, causing Harry to wake fully. He looked over at the disheveled sheets on Ron's bed and quickly surveyed the room. Hermione ran from the room and immediately began checking in each of the bedrooms for Ron.

Harry raced downstairs and checked the sitting room and kitchen. His heart beat rapidly in his chest and his mind raced as he tried to come up with where Ron could be.

"Ron?" Hermione called from the staircase. She nearly ran Harry over as she raced into the kitchen. "Is he in here?"

"No," Harry replied. "I don't know where he is."

"Harry…" Hermione choked tearfully. "You don't think they…" She stopped as one of the lower stairs creaked beneath someone's weight. Both she and Harry ran into the sitting room to find Ron slowly descending the stairs with a towel around his neck and his hair still dripping from his shower.

"Thank God," Hermione gasped as she leapt at Ron and wrapped her arms around him. Ron lost his balance and began falling back toward the staircase, but Harry quickly grabbed him by the arm and pulled him back up. Once he'd steadied himself, Ron wrapped his arms tightly around Hermione's waist and breathed in the scent of her shampoo.

"Are you all right?" Hermione asked, keeping her grip on Ron. "How are you feeling?"

Ron nodded his head, not knowing how else to answer Hermione's question. She stepped back and took in Ron's appearance. She cupped the side of Ron's face in one hand and sighed sadly.

"Your eyes," she said. "You still can't see?" Ron shook his head and shrugged.

"Maybe the effects of the potion take awhile to work," Harry suggested. Ron stepped back and froze. The image of Harry about to get hit with a Killing curse raced through his mind. His lips began moving quickly as he tried to explain to Harry what had happened. Harry grinned and gently set his hand on Ron's shoulder.

"It's all right, mate," Harry said softly. "You didn't hit me."

"How did you miss Harry?" Hermione asked. "Under the Imperious curse you shouldn't have been able to miss." Ron shrugged as he looked sheepishly down at the floor.

"Enough of this," said Harry as he grabbed Ron's arm. "Let's get something to eat."


	17. This Sucks

**~ Chapter 17 ~**

**This Sucks**

Molly smiled as she placed a second helping of waffles on Ron's plate. She was so relieved to see that his appetite had returned in full force.

"He even has more colour than the last time we were here," Tonks stated as she got up to place her empty plate in the kitchen sink. She and Remus had been invited to join the Weasleys for breakfast to study Ron's recovery. Tonks was going to take the recipe for the potion that had been used to cure Ron to the Ministry to introduce the curse to her fellow aurors.

"Another waffle, Charlie?" Molly asked as she made her way around the kitchen table. Charlie raised one hand and smile up at his mother politely before leaning back in his chair. Bill, Fleur, Hermione, Ginny, and Arthur looked about the same. Molly had made enough food to feed three households.

"I forgot how well you lot eat here," Charlie groaned, fighting the urge to unbutton his pants to relieve the tension against his full stomach.

Molly beamed and poured herself a cup of tea. If there was one thing that made Molly Weasley happy, it was feeding her family.

"I'll help clean up, mum," Ginny offered as she began clearing the plates around the table. Ron set his fork down, taking Ginny's offer as his cue to stop eating.

"Finish up, Ron," Molly instructed. "Eat until you're full, please." Ron helped himself to one more mouthful of his waffle before smirking and pushing his plate away.

Everyone sat at the table, allowing their breakfast to settle, while Ginny, Hermione, Fleur, and Molly cleared the table and washed the dishes.

"Let's move into the sitting room where we'll be more comfortable," Molly offered once everything had been cleared and the dishes had set about washing and putting themselves in the cupboards.

Remus and Tonks sat on the sofa next to Charlie and Ginny. Arthur took his favorite chair while Molly sat across from him. Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat on the floor, leaving the last sofa for Bill and Fleur.

As the room began to fill with conversation, Ron began to fidget and flex the fingers of his left hand. He could feel the Dark Mark beneath his sleeve beginning to crawl beneath his skin. He didn't dare pull his sleeve back for fear of someone seeing what Voldemort had done to him.

Harry watched with concern as Ron began to struggle to sit still. He looked over at Hermione, who was also watching Ron out of the corner of her eye.

"You all right, mate?" Harry asked, gently placing his hand on Ron's shoulder.

Something in Ron's mind snapped. He stood up and ripped his wand from his back pocket. Harry watched as Ron's eyes cleared and looked directly at him. The tip of Ron's wand sparked threateningly as he pointed it at Harry.

Before Ron could send a curse flying at Harry, Bill shouted the disarming spell and sent Ron's wand flying a few feet away. Tonks quickly grabbed Ron's wand and set it on the coffee table as Bill swiftly grabbed Ron. He wrapped his right arm around Ron's torso and grabbed Ron's arm with his left hand. He could feel Ron's heart beating rapidly against his open palm.

Ron whimpered as he fought to regain control of his own body. He panted heavily as his body fought against Bill's grip one moment and relaxed the next.

"Bill?" Molly choked, remaining seated in her chair.

"It's all right, mum," Bill grunted. "He's been cursed for nearly four months. We can't expect him to recover completely in one night. He's just working out the last of it."

Ron struggled in Bill's grip before relaxing so that he was holding all of Ron's weight in order to keep him standing. His eyes wandered over to his wand, which was set tauntingly close. His arm reached out to grab it, but it was about a foot out his grasp.

Bill pulled Ron back and hugged him against his own torso. He waited for the heaving of Ron's chest to slow against his hand before relaxing his grip on him. Ron's arms dangled limply against the side of his body as the episode came to an end.

As Ron stared at his wand, his eyes began to cloud over, gradually fading his vision to nothing. Ron sighed as he was once again rendered blind.

"You ready for me to let you go?" Bill asked. He kept his right arm tightly wrapped around Ron and gently ran his free hand over Ron's arm. Ron let out a quiet hum, which was all he could manage as a response. "Right over here, buddy," Bill instructed as he pulled Ron back to where he had been sitting between Hermione and Harry and away from his wand. He released his grip on Ron and forced him to sit down.

Ron pulled his knees to his chest and rubbed the Dark Mark gingerly as the burning subsided.

"Did I hurt you?" Bill asked, sounding concerned. He knelt next to Ron and gently touched Ron's arm. Ron quickly pulled his arm away and pressed it against his body as he shook his head.

"Oh, Bill!" Molly exclaimed suddenly. "While you're here, we should get you to remove that damned mark."

"It's bugging you, isn't it?" Hermione asked seriously. Bill pulled Ron's arm away from his torso and pushed up his sleeve. Ron's eyes widened with disbelief.

"You were asleep for a long time, son," Arthur chuckled. "We've already seen it."

"You didn't take this willingly?" Bill asked, gripping Ron's wrist tightly. Ron quickly shook his head, eyes watering, and mouthed the word 'no'. Bill smiled sympathetically and ruffled Ron's hair with his hand.

Bill pressed the tip of his wand against Ron's arm and focused his eyes in concentration. The ink beneath Ron's skin began to disappear until the Dark Mark was completely gone.

As Bill stepped back, Ron ran his hand along his arm to feel for the raised skin over the Dark Mark. His fingers slid across his arm without any interruption. He raised his head to face Bill and mouthed the words 'thank you'.

"Don't mention it," Bill replied softly as he ruffled Ron's hair with his hand.

---

Ron sat on the edge of his bed had squeezed his eyes shut. He opened them once again and surveyed his bedroom. Harry stopped in the doorway and looked at Ron questioningly.

"What are you doing?" he chuckled as he walked further into the room with a bath towel wrapped tightly around his waist.

"I think I can see the light in here," Ron whispered. He startled himself as the words passed his vocal chords.

"And speak as well," Harry stated. "That's great!" Ron grinned and sat up a little straighter. Harry laughed and shook his head as he grabbed a clean shirt and trousers from his trunk.

"What are you doing?" Ron asked his voice still barely audible. He listened as Harry rummaged through his trunk.

"I wanted to shower before your dad takes me, Hermione, and Ginny back to Hogwarts," Harry replied. Ron's face fell. "I'm sure you'll be coming back soon, now that you're no longer cursed."

Ron nodded his head and sighed. He flopped back on his bed and tilted his head to face the window where the light was brightest. Harry pulled his shirt over his head and shook the wrinkles from his trousers.

"Ron?" Molly called from downstairs. "Come downstairs, please."

Ron pushed himself off of the bed and carefully made his way down the stairs. Harry quickly finished dressing and dragged his trunk out of the room behind Ron.

"Right here, dear," said Molly, taking Ron by the hand. "In the kitchen." She grabbed Ron's jacket from the coat rack and wrapped it over Ron's shoulders.

"Where are we going?" Ron asked, his voice cutting out mid-sentence. Molly started and looked at Ron in disbelief.

"To Fred and George's shop," Molly replied, hugging her son tightly. "They want to see you."

Ron's face paled and he swallowed the lump is his throat." But I…" Ron gasped.

"Their shop has been repaired," Molly said with a smile as she cup Ron's face in her hands. "They know you didn't do it on purpose."

"All ready, dear?" Molly asked as Harry made it to the kitchen with his trunk. He nodded and dragged his trunk over to the back door. "Arthur is setting up a portkey outside."

"Boys! Levitate those. You're going to hurt yourselves," Molly huffed. Charlie and Bill entered the room carrying the girls' trunks and shook their heads. Hermione and Ginny followed behind, already dressed in their school robes.

"I'm so glad you're better, Ron," said Ginny as she hugged her brother. "We'll see you soon." Ron nodded and sighed.

"See you later, Ron," Hermione said softly. She hugged him quickly and followed Ginny outside.

Ron listened as their footsteps disappeared out the door. Molly linked her arm around Ron's and pulled him over to the fireplace. Tossing the floo powder into the fireplace, she pulled Ron inside and the two of them traveled to Fred and George's flat.

"Ron!" Fred exclaimed as they appeared within the fireplace.

"You look good!" George exclaimed. "Come in and sit down."

"Make yourself comfortable," Fred continued.

"It's so good to see you!" said George.

Ron's head snapped from side to side as he tried to face both Fred and George. He could feel the two of them take his arms and pull him over to the sofa.

The twins continued to talk excitedly about the new products they had developed for their shop. Ron could make out the sound of their customers below on the main level. He looked over at the window where the light was coming in.

As Molly fussed over a hole in George's jumpers, Fred looked over at Ron and watched as he began breathing heavily and fidgeting. Before Fred could say anything, Ron stood up, grabbed his wand from his pocket, and set the drapes on fire.

"Ron!" Molly gasped. George grabbed her wrist and pulled her back as she began to approach Ron. Ron threw his wand over to Fred with a terrified look on his face.

Fred passed the wand to George and ran over to Ron. He grabbed both of Ron's arms and looked him in the eye; watching as Ron's eyes clouded then cleared repetitively.

"I'm sorry," Ron choked before fighting against Fred's grip. Fred forced Ron to sit back in his chair and quickly bound his body with his wand. Ron swore at Fred as he fought against the invisible restraints holding him down.

Everyone watched intently as Ron began to settle down. His head dropped and he sighed defeated. "This sucks," he groaned.

---

A/N:

Thank you so much to those of you who have read and reviewed! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. More to come!


	18. Back to Normal

**~ Chapter 18 ~**

**Back to Normal**

Molly slipped under the sheets of her bed and picked her book up off of the bedside table. Arthur was already in bed, sleeping soundly beside her. As Molly relaxed against her pillow and opened her book, she could hear Ron moving around upstairs. Gripping the book tightly, she listened and tried to figure out what Ron was doing.

She could hear Ron walking slowly down the stairs from his bedroom, each step creaking beneath his weight. She quickly looked over at the bedside table where she had placed Ron's wand. She picked it up and slipped it into the top drawer so he wouldn't see it.

Her own wand was across the room in the pocket of her robe. She, Arthur, and the boys had decided, following Ron's last episode at Fred and George's place, that it would be best if Ron didn't have his wand until he'd completely recovered. By the sound of Ron's footsteps, she wouldn't be able to run and grab it before he entered the room. She hated that she was afraid of her own son.

"Mom?" Ron asked softly from the doorway. Molly looked over at Ron, gripping her book tightly, and smiled.

"What is it, darling?" she asked. "Are you feeling all right? Is something wrong?"

Ron stared at the floor and picked nervously at the doorframe. He shook his head and sighed.

"Come sit," Molly instructed as she sat up and set her book back on the bedside table. Ron walked toward the light that was given off by Molly's reading lamp, bumping into the end of the bed along the way. He continued walking around the bed, running his hand along the edge of the bed to guide him. Molly took his hand and made him sit next to her.

"What's the matter, Ron?" Molly asked. She placed her hand on Ron's forehead before cupping his chin in her hands.

Ron seemed to consider what he was going to say before facing his mum. "Mum, I was wondering if I could g…" he sighed as his voice cut out. Clearing his throat, he tried again. "Can I go back to school?"

Molly's smile faded. She watched as Ron put his head down and bit at the inside of his lip nervously.

"I don't know, sweetheart," Molly replied seriously. She brushed Ron's shaggy hair behind his ear and kissed his cheek. "I'm not sure you're ready just yet. What if you have another episode like the one today."

"But both times that happened I was just repeating what I had done under the Imperious curse," Ron explained, still staring at the floor. "Those were the only things You-Know-Who made me do."

Molly frowned. She hadn't made the connection before, but what Ron had pointed out made sense.

"Christmas is only two weeks away," Molly stated. "Why don't you wait until after the break?"

Ron's face fell and his body seemed to slump forward. Molly sighed and watched as Ron sadly stood up and began to walk away. Molly quickly grabbed Ron's hand and pulled him back over to the bed.

"I'll tell you what," said Molly. "I will speak with your father and Professor Dumbledore. Maybe you can go to school until the Christmas break and we'll see how you do."

"Really?" Ron asked happily. The crooked grin that spread across Ron's face nearly broke Molly's heart. She pulled him close and wrapped her arms tightly around him.

"Really," Molly replied. Ron pulled out of their embrace and began making his way clumsily back to his room.

"Thanks, mum," Ron whispered as he left the room.

Molly slid back against her pillow and stared up at the ceiling. She sighed deeply before turning the lamp off and curling up against Arthur.

---

Molly linked her arm around Ron's and led him up the staircase toward Gryffindor Tower behind Professor McGonagall.

They approached the portrait of the fat lady, who allowed them entrance to the room after Professor McGonagall gave her the password.

"I haven't been in here in years," Molly gasped as she pulled Ron inside. "It looks almost exactly how I remember it."

Ron looked around at the room. He could just make out the furniture around the room. His vision had improved considerably since Bill had mixed the potion for him. Everything was a blur, but he could make out objects and tell what colour they were.

Molly began pulling him toward the staircase that led to the boys' dormitory. Molly had Ron's trunk levitating behind them. As they entered the dorm room, she flicked her wand and placed the trunk on the floor beside the only empty bed in the room.

The rest of the Gryffindor boys had made Ron's bed and cleaned his area when he had left, which looked odd next to the rest of the unmade beds with their surrounding clutter.

"We'll leave you to sort yourself out," suggested Professor McGonagall. "Your mother and I are going to speak to Professor Dumbledore to get your classes sorted out. You have quite a lot of catching up to do, so we'll schedule you some periods to work with a tutor. Your program will have to be modified in order to catch you up enough to prepare you for your N.E.W.T.s."

Ron nodded and sat on the edge of his bed. He ran his hands over the freshly laundered, red blanket and gazed over at the window.

"I'll see you when you come home for Christmas," Molly choked as she fought back the tears that were building along the bottoms of her eyes.

Ron stood up and wrapped his arms tightly around his mother. She held him close, not wanting to let him go. Leaving him now was harder than when she had first sent him to Hogwarts back when he was eleven.

"I'll be ok, mum," Ron whispered.

"I know you will," Molly replied. She stepped back and kissed Ron's forehead before leaving the room with Professor McGonagall.

Ron flopped back onto his bed and smiled. It was nice to be back.

---

Harry and Hermione raced up the staircase toward Gryffindor tower, pushing passed Neville and Seamus on their way up.

"Hey, what's up?" Neville shouted.

"Ron's back!" Hermione replied excitedly. They stopped in front of the portrait of the fat lady and shouted the password in unison.

They raced inside and ran upstairs to the dorms.

"I can't go in there," Hermione stated with disappointment. "Tell him to come out and we'll go to the Great Hall together. Harry nodded and hurried into the boys' dormitory.

Ron tossed the last of his belongings into his dresser drawer and kicked his drunk under his bed. He jumped as the door was thrown open and hurried footsteps entered the room.

"Ron!" Harry exclaimed. "You're back!"

"Hey, Harry," Ron greeted with a smile.

"Hermione's waiting outside. She can't wait to see you," Harry explained. "Are you hungry? We were just going to the Great Hall for dinner."

"I'm starving," replied Ron. He carefully walked around the various objects on the floor and followed Harry out of the room.

"How's your vision?" Harry asked as he watched Ron carefully run his fingers along the stone walls to guide himself through the corridor.

"Getting better," replied Ron. He was nearly knocked off of his feet as Hermione leapt at him. She wrapped her arms around him and held him tightly. Ron smiled and returned the embrace.

---

Harry walked into the Great Hall, followed by Hermione and Ron. Hermione had her fingers entangled with Ron's as she led him into the room. Ron looked around at the blurs of colour as they walked along the length of the Gryffindor table. He could make out the people, but not the faces.

"Ron?" Ginny gasped as Hermione sat him across from his sister. "When did you get here? How are you?"

"Mum brought me about an hour ago," Ron replied. Ginny looked shocked that Ron's voice had returned. She looked into his eyes, which were still slightly cloudy, but not as much as they had be previously.

"You look great," Dean stated. "Much better than the last time you were here." Ron nodded and watched as Hermione filled his plate with food.

Across the room at the Slytherin table, Draco Malfoy looked up to see Ron sitting next to Hermione and Dean Thomas. He choked on the milk he had been drinking and quickly set his cup down.

"You all right, Draco?" Pansy asked, with a look of disgust as Draco mopped the milk from his chin with his napkin.

"I'm fine," Draco muttered. He glared up at Ron before looking back at his meal and cutting into the slice of roast beef on his plate.

---

_A/N:_

_Two chapters in a weekend! I'm nearing the end of this story and I have so many ideas that I want to get down. I'm hoping to have another chapter added really soon, so keep checking in for more! Thanks of course to those who have left reviews. I really appreciate them!_


	19. Romance and Brotherly Love

Sorry about the wait. I gad a bit of writer's block for awhile, but I'm unstuck now and I should be posting a few more chapters right away.

ObsessedRHShipper, there is a bit more between Ron and Hermione in this chapter. I apologize as I'm not much of a romance writer. Hopefully a tiny bit of fluff is all right for now.

Much more action to come in later chapters! Keep checking in for updates.

---

**~ Chapter 19 ~**

**Romance and Brotherly Love**

The Gryffindor common room was silent, apart from the occasional crackle of the fire and the light snoring from some of the portraits. It was nearly two in the morning when Hermione crept slowly down the stairs from the girls' dormitory. Her hair was pulled back in two plaits that rested on her shoulders.

Hermione normally didn't wake in the middle of the night. She had always been a very sound sleeper, but she'd had a lot on her mind lately. She and Harry had left Ron in the common room, studying before bed and she wanted to make sure he'd gone to bed. As she stepped onto the stone floor and looked over at the sofa next to the fire, she couldn't help but smile sympathetically.

Ron was sitting on the floor between the sofa and the coffee table with his legs crossed. His books were spread out around him and his head was resting on his folded arms. Hermione considered leaving him to sleep where he was, but after looking at his posture she knew he'd be sore by morning. She walked over to the sofa and sat next to Ron.

"Ron?" she whispered as she ran her hand along his shoulders. "Ron, wake up."

Ron sighed and sat up. He arched his back and stretched out his arms before looking up at Hermione.

"What time is it?" Ron grunted. He rubbed his eye with the heel of his hand and leaned back against the sofa.

"Nearly two," Hermione replied softly. "You should go to bed."

"Can't," Ron replied as his head dropped forward. "I have to get caught up or they'll hold me back next year."

"I'll help you tomorrow," Hermione suggested as she shifted over so that her legs rested on either side of Ron and she ran her hands along his arms. "You need to get some sleep."

Ron leaned back against Hermione and sighed.

"I really don't want to fail this year," Ron confessed. "I don't want to be behind you and Harry. I was barely scraping by with my grades before I left."

Hermione cupped her hand over Ron's mouth to shut his up and tilted his head back.

"I'm not going to let that happen," she purred before removing her hand and pressing her lips against his. Ron closed his eyes and returned her kiss.

Ron turned himself around so that he was facing her and pushed himself up to his knees. Hermione cupped Ron's jaw with both hands and smiled before kissing him once again.

"You really should get some rest," Hermione breathed as she pulled just a few inches away from Ron. Ron smiled and placed his hand over Hermione's. Hermione smiled and looked into Ron's eyes. It was then that she noticed his eyes were completely clear. She could once again look into the deep blue oceans of his eyes and see the world reflected in them.

"I can see you this time," Ron sighed as he wrapped his arms around her.

---

"Wake up, squirt!" Charlie shouted as he burst into Ron's bedroom. Ron flinched and squinted as Charlie threw the curtains open. "You're going to miss Christmas."

"Charlie!" Ron exclaimed. "I thought you went back to Romania."

"I did," Charlie replied. "I came back to see how you're doing." Charlie grabbed Ron by the hand and pulled him to his feet. "Let me get a good look at you."

Ron rolled his eyes before smirking and looking at his brother. Charlie grabbed Ron's chin and moved Ron's head from side to side as he inspected his eyes.

"Not bad," Charlie laughed as he slapped Ron's cheek lightly.

"You git," Ron laughed as he rubbed his cheek. "When did you get here?"

"A few hours ago," Charlie replied. "Just in time for breakfast. Which was delightful, I might add. Too bad you missed it."

"What?" Ron asked, the smile fading from his face.

"No worries," Charlie smirked. "Lunch will be ready in a few minutes."

"Why didn't someone come get me?" Ron asked. "What time is it?"

"Half past eleven," replied Charlie as he flopped onto Ron's bed. "Mom wanted to let you sleep in. She'd whoop my ass if she knew I just woke you up. Apparently you need some beauty sleep… I can see what she means."

"Sod off!" Ron spat, the smile returning to his face. "Let's go then. Now that I know I've missed breakfast, I'm starving!"

Charlie followed Ron downstairs to the sitting room where they could hear Molly and Fleur in the kitchen preparing lunch for the family. Charlie grabbed Ron by the shoulder and pulled him back before he could enter the kitchen.

"What…" Charlie cupped his hand over Ron's mouth and pressed the index finger of his free hand over his lips to get Ron to shut up.

"Didn't I tell you Mum was going to kick my ass if I woke you up?" he hissed. "I'm going to go into the kitchen; you follow a few minutes behind so she doesn't think it was me."

Ron rolled his eyes and pulled Charlie's hand away from his face.

"Go on then," Ron snorted.

Charlie nodded and pushed Ron aside playfully as he walked into the kitchen.

"Oh, Charlie," Molly greeted happily. "You're just in time to help set the table. Did you check on Ron?"

"Yeah, he's still sleeping," Charlie replied.

Ron entered the kitchen and smirked over at Charlie. "Morning mom," he said as he sat at the table.

"Good morning, sweetheart," said Molly. She quickly wiped her hands with a kitchen towel and hugged Ron tightly. "How did you sleep?"

"Fine, until Charlie came and woke me up," replied Ron. He smiled over at Charlie and returned his mother's embrace.

"You cheeky pillock!" Charlie snorted. "Next time you go blind, you're on your own."

"Whatever," Ron scoffed. "Get over here and I'll help you set the table."

"I think I liked you better as a mute," Charlie humoured as he grabbed Ron in a headlock and ruffled his hair.

"Boys, no rough housing in the kitchen, please," said Molly with a smile in her voice. "Ron, as soon as we're finished with lunch we're going to open Christmas presents in the sitting room."

---

Draco set his napkin on his empty plate and sat back in his chair. He looked over at the empty chair at the head of the table where his father would normally sit and sighed. Narcissa took notice of her son's disappointment in the absence of his father and quickly looked away.

"How is the vanishing cabinet coming along, Draco?" Bellatrix asked before taking a sip of her wine.

"I'm still working on it," Draco replied. "It's more difficult than I had originally thought. While school is out I'd like to have another look at the cabinet at Borgin & Burkes and see if I can figure out what I'm doing wrong."

"Good lad," Bellatrix nodded. "Is Potter still getting in the way?"

Draco shook his head and watched as his aunt took another sip of her wine.

"No. Now that Weasley's back at school he's been pretty preoccupied," Draco replied. He flinched as Bellatrix spit her wine back into the glass goblet.

"What!?" she gasped.

---

A/N:

Thank you so much to the reader that nominated this story for the R/HR awards. I was very flattered to get the email informing me that I'd been nominated!!

Thank you so much to all of my readers. Feel free to leave a review and let me know what you think so far. I've got the rest of the story planned out, but if there's something you think I've missed, feel free to let me know and I will do my best to oblige.

Keep checking in for updates. I'm trying my best to update as quickly as I can.


	20. Back to Square One

**~ Chapter 20 ~**

**Back to square one**

Molly set Ginny's freshly washed laundry on the end of her bed and made her way upstairs to Ron's bedroom. She placed his laundry in his dresser, knowing if it was set on his bed it wouldn't ever get put away. She loved that about her family. Seven children and not one of them were exactly alike. Even Fred and George had noticeable differences in style and personality.

She lifted Ron's jumper from one of the drawers and hugged it tightly. It was the same jumper he had been wearing when he'd gone back to Hogwarts just a few weeks ago. She buried her face into the fabric and sat on the side of Ron's bed.

Just as her tears spilled down her cheeks, she could hear soft footsteps make their way up the stairs and into Ron's room. She quickly set the jumper aside and brushed the tears away from her face as Arthur sat next to her and wrapped his arm around her waist.

"Molly? What's wrong, love?" Arthur asked softly.

"I haven't been able to spend this much time with Ron since he was ten years old," Molly whimpered. "Of all of our children, he's always been the one that's received the least amount of attention. I enjoyed getting the chance to take care of him and give him my undivided attention for a change."

Arthur nodded solemnly. He was also guilty of focusing on the rest of their children more than Ron. The twins were a handful at the best of times and Ginny had a temper on her. Ron was the quiet one; the one that could fend for himself.

"I don't want to let him go yet," Molly sobbed.

"He's in the yard, sweetheart," said Arthur as he hugged Molly tightly against himself. "He's not going anywhere for a few days yet."

"They all grew up so fast," Molly sniffed. "We almost lost him."

"He's safe now," Arthur continued. "We won't let it happen again. Dumbledore is going to keep a close eye on him once he's back at school."

He and Molly sat in a silent embrace for a few moments, listening to the familiar sounds of the Burrow and the sounds of their children enjoying their time together outside.

---

Harry pulled his pajama shirt over his head and looked over at Ron's empty bed. They'd arrived back at Hogwarts earlier in the evening. Harry had already unpacked his things. Ron, on the other hand, had crammed a few of his things into his dresser drawers and left the rest in a mess in his trunk.

Harry looked around at the other Gryffindor boys. Everyone had gone to bed quite early to prepare for classes the next morning. Harry had decided to shower and look over the Marauder's map for awhile before getting ready for bed.

He was beginning to worry. He hadn't seen Ron in a few hours and had no idea where he had gone. Hiding the Marauder's map beneath his pillow, Harry set off in search of Ron.

The common room was dark and almost silent. The sound of the crackling fire and the hushed conversation between Hermione and Ron were the only noises interrupting the evening silence.

"I missed you," Hermione whispered.

She and Ron were standing alone in the common room next to the stairs leading up to the girls' dormitories. Hermione was on the second step, so she was slightly taller than Ron.

Ron smiled and looked up Hermione He squeezed her hand and bit at his bottom lip. Hermione smiled, wrapped her arms around him, and pressed her lips to his.

Ron pulled Hermione close and lifted her off of the staircase. He set her back on the ground and gently ran his thumb across her cheek.

"I love you," she whispered before pulling him into another kiss.

Harry stopped at the base of the stairs leading to the boys' dormitories. His jaw dropped as he watched his two best friends snog passionately in the dimly lit common room. He took a few steps back and quietly ascended the staircase once again to give Hermione and Ron some privacy.

"I've got to go to bed," Hermione stated as she pulled away from Ron. "You should to. We've got Defense Against the Dark Arts first period tomorrow." Ron nodded and watched as Hermione turned and began ascending the stairs.

"Hermione," Ron said quickly. She turned back and smiled at him. He ran his hand over his arm and stared at the floor sheepishly before grinning back up at her. "I love you too."

---

Ron, Hermione, and Harry sat at a table in the second row of the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. In Snape's absence, the classroom was buzzing with excited conversations about the Christmas holidays.

The noise was instantly halted as the classroom doors swung open and Snape hurried inside. Without looking at anyone, he immediately demanded that everyone open their text books and conjured a slide presentation for the class.

"We will be doing a review of non-verbal spells," Snape muttered. "I trust no one bothered to practice over the holidays." He looked down his nose at his students before reading through the review.

After Snape's long and boring lecture, he had the students work in groups to practice non-verbal spells disarming spells. Harry, Ron, and Hermione moved to a corner of the room and began practicing on one another.

"You're not concentrating hard enough, Ron," Hermione instructed as Ron waved his wand at Harry. Harry's wand remained in his hand without so much as a vibration. "You need to picture it in your mind. See Harry's wand leaving his hand. Watch me."

Hermione pointed her wand and, without a word, sent Harry's wand flying from his hand. Harry shrugged at Ron and went to retrieve his wand.

"Don't worry, Ron," Harry encouraged. "I haven't figured it out either."

Ron sighed and attempted the spell again just as Snape walked by to observe their progress.

"I'm disappointed, Mr. Weasley," Snape sneered. "I would have thought that in your previous condition you would have mastered non-verbal skills. However, I can't say I'm surprised at your lack of skill."

Ron rolled his eyes and gritted his teeth as Snape smirked and walked away.

"Ignore him, Ron," Harry hissed. "Try again."

---

Draco moved quickly through the corridors toward the kitchens of Hogwarts. He avoided eye contact with the groups of students moving hurriedly toward their classes. He gripped the pouch in his hand tightly and pulled the door of the kitchen open. He stepped inside and closed the door behind him.

He hid behind a cupboard and removed his wand from his back pocket. Without getting the attention of any of the busy house elves, he waved his wand and silently cast the Imperious curse under his breath. One of the smaller house elves immediately stopped what she was doing and wandered over to where Draco was standing. With her back to him, she took the pouch and tucked it into the pocket of the apron she was wearing. She stepped away without looking at Draco and returned to the work she had been doing.

Draco slipped back out of the kitchen and hurriedly made his way to the Great Hall. He sat between Blaze and Crabbe and watched as Ron sat at the Gryffindor table. He smiled as he watched Ron lifted his glass off of the table and brought it to his lips.

It was incredibly subtle and easy to miss unless you were expecting it, but as Ron set his glass back on the table a few small green bubbles floated out of the glass and popped a few centimeters into the air.

Draco smiled smugly and looked away from the Gryffindor table. His job was complete. His aunt was going to be very proud.

---

A/N:  
As always, so sorry for the wait. I'll try to be more timely with the next chapter. Thanks so much to those who have left reviews. I always appreciate hearing from you!


	21. Epidemic

**~ Chapter 21 ~**

**Epidemic**

He'd felt like crap since lunch. His stomach flipped and he held his breath, waiting for the nausea to pass. He was sitting in the library, looking over their Potions notes along with the many other students that were preparing for the quiz Slughorn had scheduled for the following Thursday.

He ran his hands through his hair, wiping the sweat from his forehead in the process. He sat for a moment, with his hands on his head, and grimaced as another wave of nausea hit him.

He looked over at Hermione, who was chewing at her thumbnail and frowning as she scanned her notes. She flipped back a few pages and scribbled something onto a piece of parchment.

They'd been in the library for over an hour now and he hadn't been able to study anything. He glanced at his own textbook and watched as the words swam across the pages. He had to look away or he was going to vomit.

"Are you all right?" Hermione asked. She had felt him staring at her and had looked up to find out what he was doing. She could immediately tell there was something wrong. His face was pale and his hairline was beaded with sweat.

"Fine," he lied, softly.

"You look dreadful," Hermione stated. She closed her textbook and placed her hand on his forehead. "You're burning up!"

"I'm fine, really," he mumbled. He looked back at his textbook and struggled to get the words to stay still long enough to read them.

"You need to see Madame Pomfrey," Hermione demanded.

"You're really not looking good, Harry," Ron added. "Come on. Let's go up to the hospital wing."

Harry sighed and quickly collected his things before following Hermione and Ron upstairs.

---

The volume within the Great Hall was a great deal quieter than normal with over half the student population bed-ridden. A stomach flu was going around and more and more students were beginning to drop as the day went on. Ron and Dean were the only Gryffindor boys in their year that had managed to avoid contracting the virus.

Ron was finding it somewhat awkward to be sitting with Dean and Ginny. Ginny and Dean's relationship had always been somewhat tense. Ron had walked in on them arguing a few times, which was incredibly awkward. At the moment, the two of them seemed to be getting along well, but it never took much to set them off.

Dumbledore stood up at the head table and tapped the side of his glass with his spoon, calling the attention of the remaining students to the front.

"As you all may have noticed, a large number of students has fallen ill due to this flu epidemic. After much discussion with the staff, we have decided to cancel classes until the student population has increased enough to continue with our lessons," Dumbledore explained. "I know this is very much a disappointment to you all and I apologize for the inconvenience. However, the staff has agreed to hold tutoring sessions for those that need the additional help with their studies."

"Wicked!" Ron exclaimed happily.

"You're going to have to go to the tutoring sessions, Ron," said Hermione as she rolled her eyes. "This will give you a chance to catch up to the rest of the class."

Ron's face fell; no longer feeling the excitement of getting a few days off. At least there wouldn't be any new assignments.

"Speaking of which," Hermione continued. "Seeing as classes have been cancelled, why don't we go to the Room of Requirement and I can help you practice the D.A.D.A spells you missed."

Ron sighed and finished drinking his orange juice before getting up and following Hermione out of the Great Hall.

Dean smirked and chuckled softly as he watched as Ron reluctantly left the room. Ginny glared at him and jabbed her fork into the bacon on her plate.

---

Ron slipped into his pajamas and sat on the edge of his bed. He smirked over at Harry, who was hanging over the side of his bed clinging to a bucket.

"How are you feeling, Harry?" Ron chuckled.

"Never better," Harry groaned sarcastically into the bucket.

"You missed a great dinner," Ron explained. "Sirloin and garlic potatoes and…"

"Ron, please," Harry begged. "Do not talk about food."

They were interrupted by a loud retching across the room. Seamus was leaning over the side of his bed and dry heaving into his own bucket.

"Way to go, Ron," Dean laughed. "Now you've gone and set them off." He looked over at Neville who had gone slightly green and looked about ready to vomit as well.

"You two are getting no sympathy from me when you get this," Seamus snapped, his voice hoarse.

"Not going to happen," Dean said with a smirk. "I haven't been sick in ages."

"Your time has come," Seamus chuckled as he tossed his pillow at Dean's head.

"Aw, sick!" Dean laughed, tossing the pillow back to Seamus.

Ron smirked and slid into his bed. He pulled the covers tightly to his chin and a sighed deeply before closing his eyes.

Dean crawled into his own bed and fluffed the pillows beneath his head. He waved his wand and softly muttered a spell, dousing the light in the dorm for the night.

---

He was hit in the chest with a curse and sent flying across the room. He forced himself onto his hands and knees and gritted his teeth before looking up at Voldemort.

"Well, look who's still alive," Voldemort hissed angrily. "How did you manage to get out of the Shrieking Shack? You were very nearly dead when I saw you last."

Ron pulled himself to his feet and held onto the wall for support before attempting to pull his wand from his back pocket. Voldemort immediately sent Ron's wand flying with a flick of his wrist. He sent another curse flying in Ron's direction and sent crippling waves of pain rushing through Ron's body. Ron screamed and collapsed back on the floor.

As Voldemort released the curse, Ron rolled over so he was looking up at the ceiling. He took a few breaths before attempting to push himself back up. Voldemort pushed down on Ron's chest with his foot and pointed his wand down at Ron's face. Ron grabbed at Voldemort's ankle and attempted to relieve some of the pressure on his chest, making it difficult to catch his breath.

"I don't know who I'm going to enjoy killing more," Voldemort sneered. "You or Potter. Avada Kedavra!"

"No!" Ron screamed. He tried to sit up, but someone's hand was pushing against his chest.

"Ron, wake up!" It was Harry's voice. He opened his eyes to find Harry and Dean looking down at him; they looked worried.

Harry pulled his hand away from Ron's chest and sat back.

"That must have been quite the nightmare, mate," Dean whispered. "You all right?"

Ron nodded and sat up. His entire body was trembling and his pajama shirt was soaked through with sweat. He took in his surroundings, trying to remember where he was and how he'd gotten there. Four pairs of eyes stared at him worriedly.

"I'm fine," Ron replied, shakily. "It was just a dream. I'm fine, really."

"Ron, you're soaked," said Harry. He put his hand to Ron's forehead and frowned. "Maybe you should take some of the potion Madame Pomfrey gave us. I think you may have come down with this bloody flu."

Ron shook his head and slipped his legs over the side of the bed. He stood up and gripped Harry's shoulder as he waited for the room to stop spinning.

"It's all right," Ron mumbled. "I'm just going to go to the loo. I'll be fine. Go back to bed."

Harry nodded and moved back to his own bed. He watched as Ron stumbled through the dorm and toward the washrooms. Dean shrugged as Harry caught his eye. He got back into his own bed and pulled the blankets back over his shoulder, leaving the lights on for Ron.

"You're next, Thomas," Harry warned humorously.

"Like I said before, Potter," Dean snickered. "Not going to happen."

Ron splashed cold water over his face and breathed heavily. He'd puked up all of the dinner he'd bragged about to Harry as soon as he'd gotten to washroom. He grabbed one of the towels hanging near the sink and dried his face before looking at his reflection in the mirror. He had no colour in his face and his eyes were red and watery. He frowned and looked more closely into his own eyes. They clouded over temporarily, causing his vision to blur, then cleared once again.

He could feel his heart skip within his chest. He squeezed his eyes closed and looked at his reflection again. His bright blue eyes remained clear, apart from being slightly bloodshot. He breathed a sigh of relief and set the towel aside before making his way back to bed.


	22. One Step Forward, One Step Back

**~ Chapter 22 ~**

**One Step Forward, One Step Back**

Harry woke with a start as something crashed into the cupboard to the left of him. He grabbed his glasses and pushed them forcefully onto his face while gripping his wand and pointing it in the direction of the noise.

Ron raised one hand in the air as a signal for Harry to lower his wand while gripping at his pained knee.

"Sorry, mate," Ron grunted. "I ran into my cupboard. Go back to sleep."

Harry released the breath he had been holding and set his wand back onto his bedside cupboard. He watched as Ron pulled his school jumper over his head and gripped the cupboard again, closing his eyes and swallowing hard. His face was ashen in colour and the hair around his face was damp.

"What are you doing, Ron?" Harry asked. He pushed his legs over the side of his bed and grabbed Ron's shoulder. "You're sick. Get back into bed."

Ron shook his head, keeping his eyes closed.

"I'm fine… it'll pass," Ron mumbled. "I've got some catch-up sessions with Snape and Professor Slughorn. If I get any further behind I'm going to be held back next year."

"You can pick it up over the summer," Harry stated. "You really need to get back into bed. And you know Hermione's going to send you right back up here the second she sees you anyway."

Ron breathed in deeply through his nose and blew it out through his mouth before pushing away from the cupboard.

"I'm good. See, it's passed," Ron said with a slight smirk. "Quit worrying about me, Harry. I'll see you later."

He stepped away from Harry and made his way out of the boys' dormitory.

"Stubborn git," Dean laughed. He pulled himself into his own school kit and ran after Ron.

Harry rolled his eyes and flopped back into bed, regretting his actions immediately as his stomach turned.

---

"Well done, Mr. Walmsley!" Professor Slughorn beamed. "I'm quite surprised. I can see that these lessons have been of great benefit to you."

Ron smiled self-consciously and pushed his hands into his pockets.

"You've surpassed my expectations, m'boy," Slughorn chuckled as he examined Ron's potion more closely. "You keep this up and you'll be well on your way to receiving an 'Outstanding' in your N.E.W.T.s"

"Thank you, sir," Ron mumbled.

While Professor Slughorn was busy looking over his potion, Ron took the opportunity to sneak out of the Potions lab. It was well into the lunch hour and his stomach was growling angrily.

He moved quickly through the nearly-empty hallways until he reached the Great Hall. There were still very few students in the Great Hall due to the stomach flu outbreak. There were only a few students left from his year. Dean and Ginny were sitting across from each other just a few feet from Parvati and Lavender. Colin Creevey, Jimmy Peakes, and Katie Bell were the only other Gryffindor students at the table.

"Where's Hermione?" Ron asked as he sat next to Ginny and grabbed a roll from a basket in the centre of the table.

"She's sick," Ginny replied. "She woke up with that stupid flu this morning."

"You look like you're feeling better," Dean smirked. "I thought for sure you'd be out of commission for a few days."

"I've done my time," Ron replied with a grin. "We've got bets going on when you go down, y'know."

"You better stick it out until Friday," Ginny laughed. "I've got five sickles you get it by the end of the week."

"You're wasting your money, sunshine," Dean laughed. "I don't get sick." Ginny rolled her eyes and tossed what was left of her roll at his head.

Ron shook his head and filled his plate. He looked around the room at the students that were still standing. He waved at Luna as she looked up from her lunch and she waved back with a smile.

"I'm thinking of going down to the pitch to get some practice in," Ginny explained, pushing a few peas around her plate with her fork. "You want to come and practice with me?"

"Sure," Ron replied. "I've got to meet up with Snape at two, but I can fit in a quick practice."

"Great," Ginny smiled. "I'm so glad you're back on the team. I swear if Cormac stays on the team I'm going to personally break his face with a bludger."

"Nice," Ron chuckled.

---

Within the week, most of the students had recovered from the flu epidemic. Classes had been rescheduled and routine had begun once again. The Great Hall was once again filled to capacity with excited students.

Ron swallowed the last of his milk and set his cup back on the table before pulling his wand out of his back pocket. He waved his wand and performed the aguamenti spell and sat back to watch his cup fill with water.

"Well done, Ron," Hermione chuckled. "I really am impressed."

"I honestly don't think I've ever seen you work so hard, mate," Harry laughed as he clapped his hand on Ron's back. "I'm beginning to think Voldemort's curse may have backfired and given you some mad skills."

"I doubt it, Harry," Ron rolled his eyes. "I'm just naturally skilled, but I didn't want anyone to know 'coz then they'd expect it from me all the time." He grinned and grabbed a bowl of pudding from the centre of the table.

"So we can expect this effort from now on?" Hermione asked, raising one eyebrow wickedly.

"Not bloody likely," Ron snorted.

He shoved the last bit of his toast in his mouth and wiped his hands on his trousers before getting up with Harry and Hermione and setting off for their D.A.D.A class.

The halls were packed with students heading in various directions to their own classes. The trio pushed their way through and raced up the stairs. They reached the D.A.D.A classroom only minutes before Snape. He slammed the door closed behind him and walked toward the front of the classroom.

Ron and Harry quickly sat down and opened their text books before Snape could realize that they had been running late. Hermione already had her book open and was waiting patiently for Snape to begin his lesson.

"We will continue where we left off with non-verbal spells," Snape announced. "We've discussed how to cast these spells in depth prior to the flu outbreak, but as I'm certain many of you have neglected your studies, I will explain the process once more." He looked down his nose at Harry as he walked passed and began explaining how to cast a non-verbal spell.

Harry sighed and rested his head in his hands as he listened to Snape drone on about casting non-verbal spells. He knew how it was done; he just hadn't been able to make it work yet. He flipped through his text book, silently wishing the Half-Blood Prince had disfigured his D.A.D.A text book as well.

He looked up suddenly as Ron knocked over his quill and ink bottle. Ron's face had gone gray and his eyes were glassy. He pushed away from their table and stumbled back into the aisle.

"Ron?" Harry asked worriedly, standing up just as Snape rushed behind Ron and caught him before he could fall to the floor. Ron's body tensed and Snape struggled to get him onto the floor.

"Granger, go get Madame Pomfrey!" Snape ordered as he turned Ron onto his side and cupped Ron's cheek to keep his face from hitting the floor as his body jerked.

Without a word, Hermione raced out of Snape's classroom to get Madame Pomfrey. Harry crouched timidly beside Snape and Ron and gently placed his hand over Ron's. He stole a quick glance at Snape who was watching Ron closely.

The entire room had gone silent when Ron had hit the floor. All eyes were on Ron and professor Snape as they tried to work out what was happening.

Harry looked back down at Ron and watched as his best friend jerked painfully, unable to catch his breath. Spit dribbled down the side of his face and onto Snape's hand, but their D.A.D.A professor didn't seem to notice or care. As a painful grunt escaped Ron's throat, Harry glared angrily back at Malfoy.

His anger quickly dissipated when he saw the expression on Malfoy's face. He looked absolutely terrified as he watched Ron writhing on the floor. Malfoy looked back at Harry for no more than a second before returning his gaze to Ron.

The expression on Malfoy's face had completely confused Harry. Harry had assumed he'd see that annoying smug look Malfoy usually wore. Malfoy looked absolutely sick, like he'd never seen the Cruciatus curse before.

Ron's body relaxed and he lay, panting, on stone floor. Snape carefully slipped his hand out from under Ron's face and wiped it on his trousers just as Madame Pomfrey and Hermione rushed into the room.

Ron looked tiredly up at Hermione before closing his eyes and groaning.

"Was this anything like before, Mr. Potter?" Madame Pomfrey asked. Harry nodded and gripped Ron's hand supportively. Madame Pomfrey sighed and had Harry and Dean lift Ron off of the floor and assist him to the hospital wing.

"I'm fine," Ron mumbled. "Bill said I'd still have residual effects from the curse for awhile."

"This isn't residual, Ron," Harry explained. "Somehow you've been cursed again."

"Let me guess, its Malfoy's fault," Hermione groaned.

"I don't think so," Harry replied. "I saw the look on his face in the classroom and I really don't think he had any idea what was happening."

Ron and Hermione looked at Harry with disbelief.

Dean and Harry helped Ron into the infirmary and set him on one of the beds. Ron curled up and let his eyes slide closed.

"How are you feeling, mate?" Dean asked. Harry noticed Dean was looking quite pale and assumed he was a little shaken from Ron's episode.

"I'm fine, really," Ron insisted. He tried to look up at Dean, Harry, and Hermione, but he was struggling to keep his eyes open.

"I'm going to quickly brew the potion you took last time, Mr. Weasley," Madame Pomfrey explained. "We'll have you back to normal before dinner. Rest up for now, all right?"

She rushed into her office to begin brewing the antidote for Ron's curse.

Hermione sat on the edge of Ron's bed and ran her fingers through his hair. Ron looked up at her with a half-hearted smile as his eyes clouded over once again.

"Bloody hell," Ron grumbled.

"Don't worry, Ron," Hermione said, trying to sound encouraging. "You'll be back to normal in no time."

"I'm sorry," Dean gasped as he backed away from Ron's bed. He grabbed an empty bucket and retched.

"Oh, Dean," Hermione exclaimed sympathetically. "Are you all right?" Dean slid to the floor, still grasping the bucket.

"Crap," he grimaced. Harry and Ron couldn't help smirking.

"You, Seamus, and Ginny owe me three sickles each," Ron mumbled happily before drifting off.

---

Madame Pomfrey had sent Hermione and Harry back to Snape's class once Ron had fallen asleep. She promised to send Ron back to their common room once she'd administered the potion to remove the curse he was under. Dean had been sent back to Gryffindor tower with a potion to relieve his flu symptoms.

Only moments after his friends had left the room and Madame Pomfrey had gone back to her office to finish brewing the potion, Ron sat up and slipped off of the bed. The fog that had been covering his eyes had disappeared and his pupils were dilated. He walked silently out of the hospital wing and out of the castle. He pointed his wand at the whomping willow, immobilizing it before taking the passage to the Shrieking Shack.

Bellatrix smiled as Ron walked into the Shrieking Shack. She walked behind him and gripped his shoulders tightly before whispering in his ear.

"Welcome back, blood traitor," she hissed. "You and I have some unfinished business to attend to."

---

A/N:

Don't be mad! I had to do it! Lol. Poor Ron isn't quite in the clear yet… and Dean was being way too cocky, so he got what he deserved.

I hope you all had a great Easter break. It's back to work for me on Monday, so I wanted to finish this chapter up for you lot before then. This chapter was a little longer than the last few, so hopefully it tides you over for a bit! Happy reading and feel free to comment (constructively, please).


	23. The War at Home

**~ Chapter 23 ~**

**The War at Home**

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good!"

Harry unfolded the Marauder's Map and scanned the pages for Ron's name.

"We should have stayed with him," Hermione whimpered anxiously.

"He can't have gone far," Harry hissed, flipping the map over to search the back page. "Where the hell is he?!"

"Attention students," Professor McGonagall's voice blared over the intercom system. "If anyone knows the whereabouts of Ronald Weasley, please inform the nearest professor immediately."

The intercom crackled back into silence and Harry and Hermione shared a worried glance.

"We need to think, Harry," Hermione stated, forcing herself to calm down. "Last time the curse started with the Cruciatus and then he lost his sight and his voice…"

"Then Voldemort took him," Harry sighed, shaming his head sadly.

Hermione gasped and grabbed Harry's arm. Harry frowned and tried to read the devastated expression on Hermione's face.

"Dumbledore has the grounds completely secure to keep Voldemort out, Hermione," Harry stated reassuringly. "He can't get to Ron unless Ron goes outside the grounds and Ron isn't going to be able to just walk out the front gate. Dumbledore's enchantments are keeping us in as well as keeping Voldemort and the Death Eaters out."

Hermione shook her head, looking slightly panicked, and still gripping Harry's arm.

"He's got the gate around the perimeter magically sealed," Hermione mumbled, "but not…"

"The passage to the Shrieking Shack," Harry cut in. "Oh, my god!"

He ran to the door, pulling Hermione with him. They shot out of the portrait hole of Gryffindor Tower and nearly knocked Seamus over in the process.

"Harry? Hermione?" Seamus gasped as he gripped the railing of the staircase to keep from falling over.

"Sorry Seamus," Hermione called, without looking back. They raced down the staircase, leaping off one of the bottom steps as the staircase they were on decided to change.

"Harry, wait," Hermione cried. "Obviously Voldemort has figured out about the Hogsmeade passage. That means he can send Ron back here to do whatever he wants."

Harry stopped short, causing Hermione to run into him and sending them both tumbling to the floor.

"Can Voldemort use the passage?" Harry asked as he helped Hermione back to her feet.

"No," Hermione replied. "Dumbledore has the grounds protected from Voldemort, so he can't set foot inside, but Ron can come and go freely through the passage."

"We have to tell Dumbledore," Harry groaned.

"Tell me what, Harry?" Dumbledore asked as he, Professor McGonagall, and Professor Snape rounded the corner and approached the two shaken students.

---

Ron grabbed everything he could get his hands on and hurled it in Bellatrix's direction. Bellatrix sat in a chair in the corner of the room and watched with amusement as Ron threw the old furniture blindly where she had been standing. She flicked her wand lazily and obliterated a stool that was thrust toward her.

"That's it, boy," Bellatrix sneered. "Tire yourself out so the Dark Lord can finish you off without a fight."

Ron stopped suddenly, still holding an old lamp over his head. He growled silently and shattered the lamp at his feet before sinking to the floor and burying his face in his hands.

There were two cracks as Voldemort and Grayback Apparated into the Shrieking Shack. Voldemort looked around at the mess around the room before looking back at Bellatrix. She stood up and approached him with a smile.

"Problems?" He asked.

"No," Bellatrix replied, moving close to Voldemort's side. "The little blood traitor had a bit of a tantrum, but he's calmed himself down."

Ron raised his head and glared angrily in their direction. He stood up, pulled his wand from his back pocket and pointed it toward the three of them. Bellatrix and Grayback had their wands out instantly, prepared to block any curses sent their way. Voldemort chuckled and signaled for his Death Eaters to lower their wands.

"A few weeks of school and we're a master of non-verbal spells, are we?" Voldemort asked mockingly. "Let's see what you can do then."

Ron flicked his wand and silently mouthed a stunning spell. Voldemort raised his eyebrow and smirked when nothing happened.

"Impressive," Voldemort muttered sarcastically. "Your parents must be so proud."

Ron gritted his teeth and waved his wand, desperately trying to perform any defensive spell in hopes that one would work and take Voldemort out.

Bellatrix and Grayback returned their wands to their pockets and laughed as they watched Ron attempt to cast a spell without success.

"That's enough," Voldemort yawned. He raised his wand and pointed it at Ron. "Imperio."

Ron's arms fell to his sides. His eyes cleared and he stared blankly ahead of him.

"Shall we pick up where we left off?" Voldemort asked, putting his hand on Ron's shoulder.

----

"We can't use the Whomping Willow passage," Bill announced. "Voldemort will be expecting us through there."

The entire Weasley family was standing in Dumbledore's office with Harry, Hermione, Snape, Dumbledore, and Professor McGonagall. They had been alerted immediately following Ron's fit in Snape's classroom.

"We'll have to go to Hogsmeade," Charlie confirmed. "We'll surround the Shrieking Shack and take him out."

"What about Ron?" Molly sobbed. "We need to get him out safely."

Dumbledore's Floo lit up and Mood, Remus, Tonks, and Kingsley stepped out into the crowded office.

"We're going to have to be more insidious if we're going to keep anything from happening to Ron," Moody grumbled. "Our only chance is to get them to come out of the Shack and into the open."

"How are we going to do that, Alastor?" Tonks asked.

Moody set his gaze on Harry and sighed. Everyone followed his gaze and immediately knew what Moody was planning.

"No!" Molly gasped. "We are not using Harry as bait, Alastor. I'll not have it."

"If you want to get a snake out of its hole," Moody sighed, "You're going to have to use bait."

---

Voldemort stood at one of the windows of the Shrieking Shack and looked over the small village of Hogsmeade. The sun was just beginning to dip below the hills and trees surrounding the village, casting an orange glow over the snowy landscape. He froze suddenly and signaled to Bellatrix and Grayback to be silent as he listened intently. It was very faint, but he could hear the familiar pops of apparition in the distance.

"Right on time," Voldemort chuckled. "So predictable. Dumbledore seems to be losing his touch."

He couldn't see who had Apparated into Hogsmeade, but he was fairly certain he knew exactly who the ministry had sent. He also assumed Ron's family would be there as well.

"What is the plan, m'lord?" Bellatrix asked.

"We wait until they come into the open, then we send the boy," Voldemort replied.

---

"Do you think he knows we're here?" Charlie asked. They stood in amongst the trees of the forest surrounding Hogsmeade and looked out at the Shrieking Shack.

"He knows," Moody grumbled, "And he's waiting for us to come out."

"But we're waiting for him to come out, I thought," Said Charlie.

"He will once we've given him what he wants," Moody explained gruffly. "And that's where Harry comes in."

He and Charlie looked over at the young man next to Tonks. She gripped his hand tightly and stepped aside.

"Are you ready, Remus?" Moody asked. Harry's head nodded and he pushed the circular framed glasses over his face.

"Let's hope this works," the polyjuiced Remus sighed.

---

"I can't just sit here and do nothing!" Harry growled.

"You're not doing nothing," Fred grinned. "You're pacing and complaining…"

Fred and George were sitting next to the portrait hole in the Gryffindor common room. They had been ordered to keep Hermione, Harry, and Ginny from going off to Hogsmeade with the aurors, the headmaster, and the other Weasleys.

"It's my fault Ron is out there. I should be helping!" Harry snapped.

"There's no way to get to Hogsmeade," Hermione sighed from the sofa where she and Ginny were sitting. "The grounds are magically sealed and Snape and Professor McGonagall are sealing of the Whomping Willow passage."

Harry stopped suddenly and looked over at Hermione. She smiled as she realized what Harry was thinking.

"The passage to Honeydukes!" she exclaimed.

"Brilliant!" George laughed.

"Why didn't we think of that?" Fred groaned.

Harry, Hermione, and Ginny stood and looked at the twins with disbelief.

"You're not going to try and stop us?" Harry asked.

"No, don't go! It's dangerous!" Fred droned without expression as he rolled his eyes.

"Can't say we didn't try," George smirked.

"Let's go!" Fred demanded as he burst out of the tower.

Harry grabbed his invisibility cloak and followed after Hermione and the youngest Weasleys.

---

Remus walked slowly toward the Shrieking Shack, followed by Moody and Bill. They had their wands prepared for an attack and were keeping their eyes on the windows of the decrepit building.

"Why haven't they attacked?" Charlie whispered as he glance around the tree he was hiding behind.

"I don't know," replied Tonks. "You-Know-Who will want to take Harry out personally. He should be coming out."

"Something isn't right," Dumbledore whispered behind them.

"They all started as a curse smashed through the window of the Three Broomsticks some distance behind them.

---

Harry crawled out of the secret door in the floor of Honeydukes Sweet Shop, followed by Fred, George, Hermione, and Ginny.

"The aurors and Weasleys are going to be watching the Shrieking Shack," Hermione stated. "How are we going to get over there? Only one person… maybe two can fit under your cloak, Harry."

"Maybe we can hold it up and walk behind it," Harry suggested. "We'll be visible from behind, but it might work to just get over there."

"It's worth a try, Harry," Ginny said encouragingly as she gripped hi shoulder.

Harry nodded at Ginny and made his way over to the door. He opened the door and peered outside, making sure no one was around. Dumbledore had already evacuated Hogsmeade, leaving the entire village eerily quiet.

Harry ushered everyone out into the snowy streets and shook out the invisibility cloak. As he handed Fred one end of the cloak to hold up, a curse shot passed Fred's head and burst through the window of the Three Broomsticks.

Everyone turned to find Ron with his wand extended and Voldemort standing behind him with his hands gripping Ron's shoulders tightly.

"Let's try this again," Voldemort hissed. "No missing this time."

"Ron, no!" Hermione screamed.

Ron's blank stare was focused on Harry and he moved his arm to point his wand at Harry.

"Goodbye, Harry Potter," Voldemort spat with obvious delight.

"Avada Kedavra," Ron croaked.

Harry ducked and closed his eyes, waiting for the impact of the Killing curse. He frowned and opened one eye to find Voldemort glaring angrily at Hermione. Hermione's wand was extended and her face was drained of all of it's colour.

"You filthy little mudblood!" Bellatrix hissed. She grabbed Hermione by the hair as Voldemort summoned the wands of the five teens. He tossed them aside and nodded to Grayback.

Grayback grabbed Harry by the arm and Apparated with Voldemort, Ron, Bellatrix, and Hermione just as the aurors, Dumbledore, and the Weasleys appeared at the end of the street.

They Apparated back in front of the Shrieking Shack. Ron thrashed and fought against Voldemort's grip. Having been released from the Imperious curse, he was once again unable to see or speak.

Voldemort pushed Ron to the ground and pointed his wand over at Harry. He put Harry under a full body-bind, then pointed his wand down at Ron.

Hermione screamed and tried to fight her way out of Bellatrix's grasp.

"Imperio," Voldemort shouted. "On your feet, boy!"

Ron stood up and looked up at Voldemort, awaiting his next order.

"Last chance!" Voldemort spat. "Kill Harry Potter!"

Grayback stepped away from Harry and moved over to Voldemort's side to watch the death of Harry Potter.

Ron raised his wand and once again looked at Harry with a vacant expression.

"Come on, mate. You can fight this," Harry panted, struggling against his invisible bonds. "You did it before, remember?"

"Please, Ron!" Hermione cried.

Harry looked from Voldemort to Ron and closed his eyes. He whimpered, accepting that his best friend was about to kill him. He cringed as Ron began casting the Killing curse. Harry opened his eyes to glare at Voldemort one last time and watched as Ron turned around and sent the Killing curse toward Voldemort.

Voldemort was caught off guard, but managed to deflect the curse before it could do any harm. He gritted his teeth and sent the Cruciatus curse at Ron. Ron cried out as the curse hit him and became silent as the Imperious curse was thrown off.

Harry tried to fight of the body bind, knowing Voldemort was going to kill him once he was done with Ron. He could hear Hermione screaming and sobbing to his left, but he couldn't take his eyes off of Ron.

Voldemort finally lifted the Cruciatus curse and watched as Ron pulled his knees up to his chest until his was laying on his side in the fetal position.

Voldemort smiled as he watched Ron cower on the ground at his feet. He looked up at Harry and raised his wand.

---


	24. Protego

**~ Chapter 24 ~**

**Protego**

Voldemort walked slowly toward Harry, holding his wand menacingly at Harry's face. A low, malicious laugh rose from his throat and escaped through his bared teeth as he pushed the tip of his wand under Harry's chin.

"You fucking coward," Harry whimpered, unable to move away. The smile on Voldemort's face disappeared and he glared at Harry, considering his insult.

Hermione screamed and began kicking a Bellatrix to escape her grasp.

"My lord, would you like me to dispose of the mudblood? Bellatrix asked, pulling Hermione's head back by her hair.

Voldemort looked at Hermione with disgust.

Ron pushed himself to his hands and knees and gripped his wand tightly in has hand.

"Let her go!" Harry demanded. Ron sat up and listened intently, trying to figure out where Hermione and Bellatrix were standing. Hermione continued fighting with Bellatrix and begged her to let her go.

Ron's stomach flipped as he lifted his wand. He breathed heavily and tried to keep himself from shaking as he pointed his wand toward where he could hear both Hermione and Bellatrix.

Desperately hoping his spell would work and hit Bellatrix and not Hermione, Ron flicked his wand and focused on casting a stupefying spell.

The spell burst from the tip of Ron's wand and hit Bellatrix square in the face. Bellatrix released her grip on Hermione and flew backward a few feet. Grayback growled and ran toward Ron.

"Ron, to your right!" Hermione called.

Ron pointed his wand to his right and, with a small flourish, sent Grayback flying backward and colliding with Voldemort.

Harry's body was released and he ran to Ron's side. As he pulled Ron to his feet, Voldemort pushed Grayback aside and glared over at Harry and Ron. Hermione raced to Ron's side and gripped his free hand tightly. Ron put up a shield charm, protecting the three of them temporarily from Voldemort.

Voldemort laughed as he scanned the three frightened faces. He set his gaze on Ron and watched as Ron's extended arm began to shake.

"How are you feeling, little hero?" Voldemort mocked. "Not long now until your organs begin shutting down and you die, just like last time. Only this time, no one's here to save you." He laughed as Ron attempted to steady his hand. "Who's going to save Potter and your precious, little mudblood once you're gone?"

Ron swallowed the lump in the back of his throat and set his jaw defiantly.

Bellatrix and Grayback stood on either side of Voldemort and pointed their wands at Ron.

"No one can save you this time, blood traitor," Grayback laughed as sweat began beading along Ron's hairline.

"As soon as that little shield of yours goes down, your friends are dead," Bellatrix giggled.

"Not if I can help it," Bill growled from behind Voldemort, Bellatrix, and Grayback. The three of them turned around just as Moody, Remus, Tonks, and Bill sent a string of curses at them.

Voldemort deflected the curses aimed at him, but Grayback and Bellatrix stumbled backward and landed a few feet away on the snowy ground.

Voldemort growled angrily and sent a curse toward the large group that had interrupted the attempted murder of Harry Potter and his friends.

Dumbledore waved his wand and deflected the curse before it could reach them.

Molly cried and clasped her hand over her mouth as Ron lowered his wand, cutting off the protective shield, and collapsed. Harry quickly grabbed Ron's wand and disarmed the two Death Eaters before they could send curses toward them. Voldemort looked back at the young trio and laughed evilly.

"You can't protect them forever, old man," Voldemort threatened as he glared at Dumbledore.

"In time," Dumbledore replied softly, "I'm not going to have to."

Voldemort frowned and signaled for Bellatrix and Grayback to get to their feet.

"This will be the last time I see you," Voldemort spat at Dumbledore. He sneered before turning back to Harry. "You and I will be finishing this very soon."

Voldemort, Bellatrix, and Grayback Apparated out of sight as a string of curses were sent in their direction by the aurors and the Weasleys.

"Dammit!" Charlie growled angrily, lowering his wand and gritting his teeth.

Molly pushed through the crowd and raced over to her fallen child. Hermione backed away just enough for Molly to pull Ron into her lap and rock him slowly.

"Albus?" Tonks asked softly.

"He's not coming back," Dumbledore replied. "Not for some time, at least."

"What about my brother?" George asked.

"I believe Voldemort realizes that your brother is more trouble than he is of benefit to him, Mr. Weasley," Dumbledore responded with a smile. "You don't need to worry about Voldemort using your brother again." George nodded solemnly and looked over at Ron.

Ron writhed in his mother's arms. He choked and wheezed as his lungs shut down. His lips were blue, his skin was frighteningly pale, and his eyes were rolling back as he began losing his fight to stay alive.

"Hermione," Molly sobbed. "You need to blow in his face like you did last time." She ran a shaky hand through Ron's hair and pulled him close. "Come on, sweetheart. Breathe for me, please."

The remaining Weasleys ran over to them and crowded around Ron and Molly. Molly looked up at Arthur tearfully and grasped his hand tightly.

"I can only do CPR if he's unconscious, Mrs. Weasley," Hermione choked.

"Mom, hold him still," Bill instructed as he knelt beside his mother and rummaged through his pocked. He pulled out a small vial and removed the stopper.

"What is that?" Hermione sniffed tearfully.

"The potion that Madame Pomfrey brewed for him when he disappeared," Bill replied. He moved close to Ron's face and gently propped him up.

"This is all I have, buddy," Bill explained, hoping Ron could still hear him. "You have to get it all down and not spit any out, ok?"

"He's going to choke on it, Bill," Charlie shuddered. "He's not going to swallow; he's going to inhale it."

The two of them watched as Ron desperately tried to fill his lungs with air, unable to get much in or release what he had inside.

"I may be able to help here," Moody barked as he pushed through the crowd of Weasleys. As a hardened auror, Moody had experience with force feeding potions to unwilling prisoners. He figured his skills would benefit Ron.

"I'm really sorry, Weasley," Moody muttered to Ron as he knelt next to Bill and took the potion vial from him.

Ron had stopped moving and was taking in shallow breaths, but was no longer coherent.

Without another word, Moody wrenched Ron's mouth open, thrust his finger down Ron's throat, forcing it open and causing Ron to gag. Molly could feel Ron's body tense against the finger invading his throat, but he didn't have the strength to do anything about it.

Moody poured the potion down Ron's throat and watched as Ron's throat forced the potion further into Ron's body. Moody extracted hi finger and wiped it on the side of his trousers.

"That's right, Weasley," he grunted, getting back to his feet. "Get it all down."

Harry, Charlie, Ginny, and Tonks looked at Moody with shocked expressions before looking down at Ron.

Ron's shallow breathing soon regulated and his colour began to return.

"Well, it worked; didn't it?" Moody grumbled. "Tonks, Kingsley, Remus, we need to check the area to make sure there aren't any more Death Eaters lurking about," he announced, not wanting to stick around for the emotional reunion amongst the Weasleys.

Tonks clapped her hand on Charlie's shoulder and smiled supportively before following Moody back to the village.

Ron groaned as Molly wrapped her arms around him and pulled him tightly into her embrace.

"Mom?" Ron croaked; his voice hoarse. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, squinting as he waited for his eyes to close.

"Ronnie! I'm so glad you're all right!" Molly sighed. She allowed herself to relax and helped Ron to his feet. Bill grabbed Ron as he faltered and helped him steady himself.

Charlie placed his hand on Ron's arm and tried to read the odd expression on his little brother's face.

"Everything all right, squirt?" Charlie asked.

Ron looked up at Charlie and grimaced.

"I don't know if it was the potion of Moody's finger," Ron replied, "but I could really use some gum." He smirked up at Charlie before being enveloped in Charlie's embrace.

Ron and Harry walked off of the Quidditch pitch with their brooms in hand. The crowd was still cheering happily from the stands, celebrating Gryffindor's impressive win against Ravenclaw.

"You were amazing!" Hermione squealed as she ran toward tem and leaped into Ron's arms. He dropped his broom and wrapped his arms around Hermione.

They kissed briefly before Hermione pulled away with reddened cheeks. She looked around to make sure she hadn't caused a scene. Ron smirked and bent over to pick up his broom.

"Ginny told me you got an Outstanding from Snape on your non-verbal spells exam," Hermione exclaimed as Ron took her hand. "I'm so proud of you."

"I had a lot of practice, didn't I?" Ron chuckled. Hermione smack him playfully.

The trio walked from the pitch to the castle and toward Gryffindor Tower for the post-game party.

Dumbledore was standing just outside Hogwarts main entrance and flashed them a friendly smile.

"Great game today, gentlemen," Dumbledore stated happily. "Thos were some impressive saves, Mr. Weasley."

"Thanks, Professor," Ron replied. They pushed through the door and began walking inside. Ron stopped suddenly and ran back to Dumbledore's side.

"Oh, Professor!" he exclaimed.

"Yes, Mr. Weasley?" Dumbledore asked.

"I've been thinking about what happened a few weeks ago and I was wondering if you could help me understand something," Ron began.

"I'll try my best," Dumbledore encouraged. "What's been bothering you?" Harrry and Hermione made their way over to Ron and Dumbledore and listened intently.

"When You-Know-Who had me under the Imperious curse, he couldn't get me to kill Harry," Ron explained. "I was wondering if you could tell me why."

"It's rare, Mr. Weasley," Dumbledore nodded. "But it has happened before. It takes a very powerful mind to be able to throw off the Imperious curse."

Ron stood for a moment, contemplating Dumbledore's response.

"So, why was I able to throw it off?" he asked finally.

Hermione laughed and slapped Ron's arm.

"Well, Ron," Dumbledore chuckled. "If you play chess as well as I hear, then I would assume that you have the type of mind that could throw off the Imperious curse."

Ron's face reddened and he looked down at his shoes; embarrassed.

"Come on, Ron," Harry laughed. "Let's get your abnormally brilliant mind back to the common room.

"Have fun," Dumbledore laughed. He waved them off and headed toward his office.

---

Epilogue:

Hermione was sitting on the sofa in the common room, studying for her Potions midterm. Ron and Ginny walked through the portrait hole, talking excitedly about the highlights of their Quidditch practice session. Ron flopped onto the sofa beside Hermione and wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

"Happy birthday," she said, kissing him on the cheek.

"Thanks," Ron smirked. "Where's Harry?" He sat up and looked over the back of the sofa to see if Harry was somewhere in the common room.

"He stayed late in Potions to question Slughorn about the Horcruxes," Hermione replied with a matter-of-fact tone while rolling her eyes. "He's never going to get Slughorn to spill his secrets like that though. He needs to be more subtle, but does he listen to me… no!"

"Whoa," Ron laughed, raising both of his hands as a sign of surrender. "I'm sorry I asked."

"Sorry," Hermione laughed. Ron grinned and squeezed Hermione's shoulder tightly before kissing her forehead.

"I'm going to get ready for bed," Ron yawned. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Good night," Hermione sighed. She gripped the collar of Ron's school jumper and pulled him into a deep kiss. Ron flashed her a crooked grin before heading up to the boys dorms.

He changed out of his uniform and into his pajamas, sitting on the edge of his bed to pull on his slippers. His eyes locked onto a large box of chocolates set atop Harry's bed and smiled.

"Aw, Harry. You shouldn't have," he said to himself. He examined the heart-shaped box and shrugged before popping one of the chocolates in his mouth. He nodded with satisfaction before unwrapping two more chocolates and putting them in his mouth. He sat back on the edge of his bed with the box of chocolates without noticing the card on Harry's bed addressed to Harry from Romilda Vane.

---

A/N:

And we all know where the story goes from there! I hope that wasn't a disappointing ending for you (I really do suck at writing endings). I can't believe this story is done. I guess that means I can get started on my next one! Thanks to all who reviewed this story. I really appreciate it and enjoyed reading your thoughts. Let me know what you thought of this last chapter or about the story as a whole. I look forward to your thoughts and keep an eye out for my next fic!


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